Oct 2, 2021
Canceling Tom Robbins
(CW: pedophilia)
For a long time in my 20s and early 30s, I’d tell anyone who asked that my favorite author was Tom Robbins. I put it in my author bio. I emulated his goofy writing style in my job pitches. I even wrote him a fan letter once—the only time I’ve ever done anything like that.
My favorite Tom Robbins book was Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates. I loved everything about it—the characters, the Matisse connection, the magical, the mystical, the sacred & the inane. I still admire how much fun he had with words & sentences; how playful he was with his writing.
But I tried to reread it recently, and I hated it. 😬
The main character in that book is called Switters, and Switters is… well… a pedophile. He’s “in love” with his 16-year-old stepsister. He carries around her training bra from when she was 12 like a talisman.
As a young woman steeped in a culture that oversexualizes young girls and then slut-shames them for being too sexy… I’m not proud to say, I didn’t even register the pedophilia at the time. I thought Tom Robbins was fun & sex-positive.
But as a 43-year-old feminist… it was just disgusting. I can’t believe it got published. I look back and think… did *all* of his books oversexualize and/or infantilize women? Are all those “strong female characters” just some white dude’s pornographic fantasies? What did the 2nd-wave feminists make of Tom Robbins?
What do we do now, with our problematic faves?
I’ll tell you another author I was super into in my early 20s—Ayn Rand, long before she became the poster child for Silicon Valley tech bros. Her ideas are problematic in a different way though—she basically creates an argument in favor of the wealth gap, b/c some people are just “more special” than everyone else. Welp.
But in my early 20s, slinging cocktails for a sexist Jabba-the-Hut boss who harassed me daily—I was ALL ABOUT THAT SHIT.
None of us are perfect. There is no such thing as being “perfectly woke.” There’s a lot more to reckon with besides some problematic old books… but hey, this is where I’m at today.
About Sam
Samantha Pollack is a Copywriter & Creative Director who works with ethically minded, mission driven businesses who are actively trying to reshape our culture (and possibly tear down the patriarchy). She’s also the founder of The Highly Sensitive Business Owner, a 12-week online program that helps HSPs & neurodivergent business owners create healthier, more sustainable systems in their work.
Sam also writes about feminism, privilege, pop culture, entrepreneurship, the creative process, and whatever else is on her mind. She currently lives in Asheville, NC.
Emails for cult thought leaders.
(Personality included.)
Want to learn how to craft emails that inspire action and engagement WITHOUT the “tried and true” (cough: patriarchal) norms we’ve all been taught?
I’m doing it, and I can show you how to do it, too.
(But sometimes, I also like to write about the books I’m reading, or the creative process, or the entrepreneurial experience, or why I hate Steve Jobs, or how I met my BFF. I’ll send you emails like that, too.)
*Just kidding. It’s only an email list.
Books. Cats. Rants. Drawrings.
(and every couple months or so, an unexplained absence 🤷🏻)
