I was reading Avatar: The Last Airbender fanfiction the other day, when I noticed that there is a disproportionate amount of Zuko/Azula incest stories in the fandom. Then, I realised that Harry/Lily incest fanfiction isn't uncommon either. Jaime/Cersei is also less rare than I originally thought.

Why? Why do people write/support these stories, without disregarding them? Shouldn't we treat them along the same lines as bestiality, pedophilia, and other "taboo" fanfiction? Even on DLP, which astutely renounces slash for being OOC for Harry, some people write Harry/Lily. Why, is there an appeal to these types of stories?

Sure, Azula does sound like she wants to molest her older brother against the wall, but then again, Azula sounds like with everyone. I'm sure that she's more likely to fry Zuko with a lightning bolt than do the hanky-panky with him. And surely Harry's physical similarities to James wouldn't be justification for making Lily hot for her own son. Many sons share their fathers' genetic traits, yet I don't think the mothers are ready to jump on the incest train. :/

The only one justifiable should be Jaime/Cersei, imo, and only because it's canon, I guess. And even then, the incest was depicted rather creepily, not romantically.

Hence, can anybody please explain to me why incest stories are surprisingly popular in fanfiction? I can understand why slash is popular (because it wets the panties of the sex-starved fangirls to imagine two "hot" guys making out), but surely people aren't turned on by incest. That's be... icky. D=

EDIT:

The only reason I could think of why anybody would write an incest story would be to write in the Tragedy genre, evoking Oedipus Rex, or to make a character extra-creepy. Thoughts?

 

Gee, it's almost as if fetishes differ from person to person. But that would be crazy, right?

 

It's not just limited to fanfiction either. Think about the insane amounts of anime that either have a sister who wants to get with her brother, or actual anime who's entire concept is that pairing - Kiss X Sis, Koi Kaze, Onnichan no Koto, etc (Let's not even begin to delve into hentai/doujinshi/eroge). With a mother, it's more restricted to hentai, or step-mothers.

It's kinda bizarre.

And yet, awesome.

I'll admit, for some reason I can't work out yet, I like that shit.

And yet, if I think of a similar instance in my own family, well...urgh. I can't even say it. >_>

Maybe we're just fucked up in the head - most normal people would agree too. =P



As to them being popular, I dunno whether you could say that. DLPers love it because well, its DLP. Most fanfiction fans would find it disgusting.

 

I can understand and concede that different people have different fetishes. But what I want to understand is why the particular incest fetish is more popular than I originally imagined. Why, what's the particular appeal in that fetish? Is the whole "forbidden relationship" thing?

 

God, I know I've already done this exact psychoanalysis before- actually, fuck it, let me try google.

Ahah!

 

"Taboo fetishes are always more pleasing because you aren't supposed to enjoy them."

 

Because Harry/Lily is awesome. Also, this.

 

Not really. Incest - in fanfic and irl - is pretty fucking disgusting.

 

When you read a story about Harry, you put yourself in his shoes. And Lily is a milf.

There's a reason why Harry/Petunia or Harry/Molly aren't as populair. IMHO, it's mostly about Lily, not the incest.

 

I blame Vash.

 

For me, I see Lily/Harry incest being popular because Lily is...well, a MILF.

Lily's a MILF, Harry's the hero/protagonist. Regardless of character relation and reader self-inserts for either character aside...(shrugs).

 

Not sure how I feel about Harry/Lily, but if I'm reading a story and Harry walks in on the Patil twins, I'm sticking around for a few paragraphs

 

If Harry wasn't raised by Lily, like in canon, and at 17 he meets a good looking Lily, who in some stories is at the age she died, i.e. 20-ish, I can see how he would be attracted to her and no get the taboo "icky" feeling, because he doesn't remember her as his mother. Otherwise, I can't see it working.

Sibling incest is more plausible, but again in healthy people requires not being raised together (then familial attraction kicks in).

Otherwise I consider all incest scenarios in the genre of "psychologically damaged character/protagonist", which may be interesting to write (to someone) but I don't read.

 

There is a charm about the forbidden that makes it unspeakably desirable.
- Mark Twain

I don't think he was talking about incest, but something dirty was on his mind.

 

...

Say that in Dark Syaoran's face and not online, and see what happens

And it never bothered me either that I am the offspring of a cousincouple.

 

DON'T YOU GUYS DARE RUIN A GOOD THING. HARRY/LILY IS THE ONE TRUE PAIRING, DON'T YOU DARE!

 

LOL. What? Really?

 

It always surprises me that this would be asked. For most of human history, incest has been displayed in some form or another. Almost all of the old gods (from the Greek to the Japanese) feature incest. Hell, even the Bible tosses in some for good measure with the story of Lot and his daughters. Then you have royal families marrying people who are related to them.

I fail to see why seeing incest would be so surprising. It has been a prominent feature in almost every culture even if most people don't consciously realize it.

 

I tried to explain my attraction to the pairing, my ended up deleting it, as it sounded wierd and came out wrong. I think it has already been explained well enough.

Harry / Lily pairing is hot, that is really all there is to say.

Oedipus Flower and some of Big D's stories? Good stuff man, good stuff