Hi, All,
I’d like to start a discussion on protagonists who smoke cigarettes. I am disturbed by the fiction/Hollywood portrayal of smoking as cool, manly, sophisticated, etc. This problem may be more Hollywood than anything else, but written fiction drives the movie industry.
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DISCLAIMER. I am talking about fictional characters who smoke. I’m not judgmental about writers who may smoke, so nothing I say here is directed at the writer. I’ve read a previous thread on physical manifestations of smoking, so I know there are a significant number of smokers who read/chime in here. This is not aimed at you.
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I’m not against cigarettes in our stories. We have to be real. But, we all bear a responsibility here as well. My main objection is that smoking has become entrenched in the characterization of so many of our fictional heroes, we may be perpetuating, unwittingly, the portrayals above, particularly for our younger readers*. In terms of habit-based reactions to stressful situations, interesting substitutes can be found (from a characterization point-of-view). For oral fixators, Kojak and his lollipops come to mind.
I am not a crusader against smoking. This is not personal. But I stop dead when reading about a sympathetic character/protagonist/hero who is handsome (pretty) and athletic (fit) and proceeds to light up a cigarette. Are some smokers athletic and fit? Of course. But there is no positive correlation. In fact, I believe there is a strong negative correlation. Here’s my objection: Cigarettes are useful props, and have their places in stories, but they are also overused to the point of being cliché. How many hardboiled detectives have a cigarettes hanging from the sides of their mouths? Are the cigarettes necessary to the character, or just a perceived characteristic of the occupation? I ask everyone to find a good story-based reason before having a character smoke. And make it real. If one is striving for reality, he/she should not only have a character light up at the conclusion of a mop-and-bucket sex scene, but also have the character’s partner awakened the next morning by the sounds of the character hawking up a tar-stained loogie in the bathroom (In know, I know. Both are stereotypes, but they are included to make a point).
To be really controversial, I’ll suggest that using cigarettes CAN BE like using any other cliché—lazy writing. Not in all circumstances, or course, so don’t come unglued. However, including cigarettes in our writing shouldn’t be automatic—it should be well thought out. Remember, for characterization’s sake, smoking is an addictive, self-destructive habit. It will serve many writers well in that vein. By the way, if you want to add a layer of tension and a serious subplot to a detective series, write a story with the protagonist attempting to give up a smoking habit.
Mount and ride.
*I am aware that writing about serial killers isn’t going to drive a reader to go out and kill, but the perception of “coolness” and the imitation of celebrities and movie characters is a real, powerful problem for everyone in our culture, particularly for younger people.
I’d like to start a discussion on protagonists who smoke cigarettes. I am disturbed by the fiction/Hollywood portrayal of smoking as cool, manly, sophisticated, etc. This problem may be more Hollywood than anything else, but written fiction drives the movie industry.
**********
DISCLAIMER. I am talking about fictional characters who smoke. I’m not judgmental about writers who may smoke, so nothing I say here is directed at the writer. I’ve read a previous thread on physical manifestations of smoking, so I know there are a significant number of smokers who read/chime in here. This is not aimed at you.
**********
I’m not against cigarettes in our stories. We have to be real. But, we all bear a responsibility here as well. My main objection is that smoking has become entrenched in the characterization of so many of our fictional heroes, we may be perpetuating, unwittingly, the portrayals above, particularly for our younger readers*. In terms of habit-based reactions to stressful situations, interesting substitutes can be found (from a characterization point-of-view). For oral fixators, Kojak and his lollipops come to mind.
I am not a crusader against smoking. This is not personal. But I stop dead when reading about a sympathetic character/protagonist/hero who is handsome (pretty) and athletic (fit) and proceeds to light up a cigarette. Are some smokers athletic and fit? Of course. But there is no positive correlation. In fact, I believe there is a strong negative correlation. Here’s my objection: Cigarettes are useful props, and have their places in stories, but they are also overused to the point of being cliché. How many hardboiled detectives have a cigarettes hanging from the sides of their mouths? Are the cigarettes necessary to the character, or just a perceived characteristic of the occupation? I ask everyone to find a good story-based reason before having a character smoke. And make it real. If one is striving for reality, he/she should not only have a character light up at the conclusion of a mop-and-bucket sex scene, but also have the character’s partner awakened the next morning by the sounds of the character hawking up a tar-stained loogie in the bathroom (In know, I know. Both are stereotypes, but they are included to make a point).
To be really controversial, I’ll suggest that using cigarettes CAN BE like using any other cliché—lazy writing. Not in all circumstances, or course, so don’t come unglued. However, including cigarettes in our writing shouldn’t be automatic—it should be well thought out. Remember, for characterization’s sake, smoking is an addictive, self-destructive habit. It will serve many writers well in that vein. By the way, if you want to add a layer of tension and a serious subplot to a detective series, write a story with the protagonist attempting to give up a smoking habit.
Mount and ride.
*I am aware that writing about serial killers isn’t going to drive a reader to go out and kill, but the perception of “coolness” and the imitation of celebrities and movie characters is a real, powerful problem for everyone in our culture, particularly for younger people.
