Like a couple other people who have commented already, I didn't encounter the book until I was already an adult. I picked it up casually in a bookstore and read it on the spot; it's one of the only times I can recall totally losing it completely in public. I occasionally pick it up in bookstores and skim over it merely to see if it'll have the same effect. I'm masochistic that way.
I have to admit that the gender-specific language never really struck me. It makes sense now that you mention it, but I honestly never noticed it before...at least not enough for it to have made an impression. I'm going to have to keep that in mind for the next time I masochistically re-read the book in Barnes & Noble.
I can't agree that it's that horrible a book to illustrate 'love.' A lot of people exist in relationships that ARE primarily based on sacrifice and selfishness; it may not be right, but it's pretty realistic. So many relationships are exactly like the one illustrated in this book...usually down to the gender specifics. People find a balance between need and selfishness, often convincing themselves that being used and needed is the same as being loved.
I'm not a parent and it's likely that I'll think differently when and if I ever have a child, but I don't think it's that terrible a children's book...so long as you're the sort of person willing to explain to your child that a)the male character is a selfish horror of a human being and b)giving ideally should not = sacrifice.
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Date: 2005-01-12 04:43 pm (UTC)I have to admit that the gender-specific language never really struck me. It makes sense now that you mention it, but I honestly never noticed it before...at least not enough for it to have made an impression. I'm going to have to keep that in mind for the next time I masochistically re-read the book in Barnes & Noble.
I can't agree that it's that horrible a book to illustrate 'love.' A lot of people exist in relationships that ARE primarily based on sacrifice and selfishness; it may not be right, but it's pretty realistic. So many relationships are exactly like the one illustrated in this book...usually down to the gender specifics. People find a balance between need and selfishness, often convincing themselves that being used and needed is the same as being loved.
I'm not a parent and it's likely that I'll think differently when and if I ever have a child, but I don't think it's that terrible a children's book...so long as you're the sort of person willing to explain to your child that a)the male character is a selfish horror of a human being and b)giving ideally should not = sacrifice.