50 Shades of Grey. Do you know what these four words mean? Well, yes, okay, we know about 50. We know about shades. We know that OF is a preposition. We know that grey is a color.
But 50 Shades of Grey is also something else, a phenomenon, en erotic trilogy written by E.L. James, which details the relationship between a billionaire control freak and a college student. It was originally self-published, had over a million downloads before a traditional publisher took notice and bought the trilogy for 7 figures. The books then sold to Hollywood. As of July 2012, 50 Shades of Grey has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide.
I love these kinds of success stories. They illustrate how technology benefits us, the people, by enabling us to choose what we want to read, and by enabling us to reach for our dreams. I first heard about the book maybe six or eight months ago, when someone asked if I’d read it. I hadn’t. I thought the title was interesting and asked my friend what the book was about.
“Kinda hard to say,” she replied.
Then I read an article somewhere about how erotic fiction had been banned from some site and 50 Shades was mentioned. A censored book somewhere, some way. I checked it out and thought about how diarist Anais Nin was censored in her day, particularly when it came to her erotic writing, like Henry and June, which eventually became a movie. It’s about Henry Miller, his wife June and their sexual relationship with Nin.
“Okay, who has read 50 Shades of Grey?” I asked one afternoon at the dog park. The ladies, who range in age from, oh 25 to 75, suddenly looked collectively guilty. And I knew all of them had read the book and were totally shocked that I, the writer of the group, hadn’t read it yet. So that night I downloaded the novel to my iPad.
50 Shades of Grey is written in a single voice, the I voice, in present tense. It’s not the easiest point of view or tense to write, but in this novel, it works. The protagonist, Anastasia, is a self-effacing college girl with a bossy roommate, a journalist major. The roommate can’t make a particular appointment with Mr. Grey, a young billionaire who is the whiz kid of Wall Street or its equivalent somewhere, so Anastasia goes in the roommate’s place. When Anastatia meets Grey, the physical chemistry is powerful. Their physical attraction to each other is written masterfully.
At the dog park, Colleen asks, “Did you get to the playroom yet?”
“Nope. But she blushes a lot, Colleen. It bugs me.”
Colleen rolls her eyes. “Keep reading. The first book is great. I just sat down and read it. By the third book, I had to stop to take two cold showers.” She rolls her eyes again and laughs. “The instant I saw that playroom, I knew I’d be gone. I don’t do submissive.” And by the end of the trilogy, the protagonist doesn’t do submissive, either, Colleen tells me.
But in the first book, Anastasia – a virgin – is the Submissive and Grey is the Dominant. That’s how it is spelled out in their contract. The first sex scene happens after her reactions to and their discussion of the contract.
The contract. It was probably conjured when Mercury, which rules contracts, communication, and the conscious mind, was moving retrograde. These scenes are definitely retro in that they hurl women’s rights back to the dark ages, when men and women were locked in social-sanctioned power struggles: the man told the woman to jump and she jumped. Just look at mythology: the top god is Zeus.
So at the dog park, Karin says, “Hey, did you see that article today in the Palm Beach Post about 50 Shades of Green?”
Nope, didn’t see it. Well, the focus of the article was that 50 Shades of Grey has sold 20 million books since March. The article didn’t say whether these had been actual book sales or downloads, but either way, it doesn’t matter to the author. She is already a millionaire. Add or subtract a few dollars in either direction and her bottom line isn’t an issue.
As of mid-July, Amazon lists nearly 8,500 reviews that bring the book to three stars overall, and some of them are comical. One guy notes that the writing is awful, the plot too simple, and that Anastasia blushes way too much. But women, for the most part, seem to love the book.Why? Do we entertain fantasies of this kind, of billionaire guy, a control freak with major issues? Really? Our psyches are stuck there? Or is this book about female pleasure, dark and light?
The other day I had my cut my hair cut and every woman who works in the salon has read at least the first book and most of the have finished the trilogy. “So what’s the appeal?” I ask Angie.
She laughs. “For real? We all have 50 shades of grey hidden somewhere in our psyches.”
James has tapped into something important with her books. She has provided insights into the female psyche – the old paradigm psyche and the new – and given it a name. Like Nin before her, James doesn’t hold back. She is far less poetic than Nin, but what she has to say appeals to women across the board.
When James did her first book signing at Books and Books in Miami, several hundred women were lined up to have their books signed. Twenty to eighty years of age, the paper said. An unprecedented number for a book like this. I point this out to our daughter. “I’ve been hearing a lot about this book. I’m going to download it.”
“Me, too.”
And she did. Her take? “Wow, this is a racy book, Mom. But I love the protagonist.”
Yes. So do I. Anastasia feels what you felt in your twenties. She is the archetype of angst personified, but greatly exaggerated. And Grey, also greatly exaggerated, is the archetypal bad boy. Bring them together, with the author’s ebook background, the 7-figure contract for James, and you’ve got a mega bestseller.
Tipping point. Now there are 50 Shades of Grey vacation packages, flights, cruises. Maybe there will eventually be a 50 shades of grey shamanic retreat.
Colleen assures me that by the end of the third book in the trilogy, we understand why Grey is the way he is, that Anastasia never signs the contract, and that she is not the submissive Grey hoped she would be. But you know what? Regardless of what these books are or are not, James hit a big time nerve, a tipping point sort of nerve, a this is your juncture sort of nerve, babe. And from my point of view as a writer, that’s saying something.
Cheers for our Inner Goddess!!!!!
Argh, don’t have time right now to read this fine column of comments, but, Trish, I couldn’t get through the first book. If Anastasia’s inner goddess Barbied one more comment, I was going to barf. I felt dejavu; Emmanuel or Anne Rice’s Beauty series, on and on. S&M is the feminne psyche. Me, I’m holding out for better.
Your comment made me laugh! Anatasia’s inner goddess!
My cardiologist is an almost fanatical Catholic, although I adore him. But one of his primary Catholic doctrines is that wives are admonished to be “submissive” to their husbands, regardless of any circumstances. This doctrine, if for none other, prevents me from EVER even thinking about becoming Catholic. And Sansego, I totally agree about Katie and Tom Cruise. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see him doing interviews and listening to his utter control-freak ideas. Good for Katie and her daughter! At least she got away. Many don’t, or can’t. My essential problem with 50 SHADES OF GREY is its lack of real storyline outside the sexual content. That IS the storyline. If there had been a genuine saga or tale of some kind, it might have held my interest. But the entire theme was constructed around the abusive sex, and that was a total turn-off for me. Again, my opinion only. Speaking of this, yet slightly off-subject, IF I were inclined (and I’m not) to vote for the Repug presidential candidate, his stand on women’s rights to make decisions for our own bodies would take my vote away. I’m appalled every time that commercial comes on TV showing him stating he’ll do away with women’s clinics, etc. Horrible. We are NOT slaves to men, and our bodies belong to US. OK. Enough said before I get myself all riled up. Just one more thing, he lost millions of women’s votes with this particular part of his platform!!
Haven’t read it, but most of the women around me have. I am not a total prude either, but I just won’t give in to reading about some woman who allows herself to be manipulated and dominated by a slick, powerful man. I think our society has enough of that and it is true it is in our psyche but that is the problem too. Which is why it probably was so successful, but I am sadden a bit that it is successful. Happy that it is a self published book, I didn’t know that, but I wish the desire to read it was due to it being over a really good message and story of empowerment for women rather than the same old nonsense.
Yes, it would be great if the book was a mega seller because it’s about empowered women. But it is what it is and I do wonder what that tells us.
If anything, it helps explain how someone like Katie Holmes could be sucked into a marriage with a control freak like Tom Cruise. The fantasy might work for awhile, but at some point, I think the women will bolt from it if they really care about their independence and right to make their own choices.
Geez, Rob, you mean a woman took THIS book to a Yoga class? WOW!! That’s hilarious, at least to me! Talk about contradictory energies! Did she happen to bring along any leather and chains, too? Those Yoga positions, though….Hhhhmmmmmmm! Sorry….hearing that someone brought this book to Yoga just brought me a good chuckle! She couldn’t leave the book long enough to go to Yoga. Funny! 😉
Funny that you and I posted about the same book on our blogs, on the same day.
Really?! Synchro. Off to take a look!
Nope not interested. I like romance too, although I do love Game of Thrones.
Games is just fascinating. Great writing and acting!
Like Mike, I haven’t read these novels – not even the good parts – 😉 and was not going to comment today. But then, something a bit strange happened. I walked into a yoga class that I was asked to teach, subbing for the regular instructor, and there was a young woman lying on her yoga mat right next to my spot, engrossed in 50 Shades.
She kept reading right up to the moment class started, then laid the book down between our mats. So every time I looked down to my right during the class, there was the book, the subject of today’s post.
I find it all quite funny, though I haven’t read the book – but Karin now has a copy (should I be concerned!)
From what I have read in many reviews there seems to be a great deal of snobbery about the book – over here anyway – the critics run it down almost on principle whereas they praise JK Rowling for massive sales (obviously completely different subject matter). I don’t think that they like the idea of a new publishing era and system when, with luck, a lot of books will go viral which never stood a chance in the past. I think this is great. The restrictive doors have been opened.
I think the powers that be freak out when a self published book goes viral. Little by little, the technology is enabling people to claim their own power.
Not a bad trend! It’s about time!
I simply cannot imagine a MOVIE made of this material. Whoop! (And which actors and actresses, pray tell, would accept the roles of the protagonists? Hhhmmmm…..let’s see…..a few do come to mind!) I don’t read romance novels, but instead enjoy the suspense-thriller genre and authors such as King and Koontz, the Kellermans, Robin Cook, the late Michael Crichton, the two unrelated Connollys, (Michael and Jonathan), etc. Over the years I’ve read virtually all Trish’s books, fiction and non-fiction, that I can get my hands on, which has been many, and I love those, and Rob’s, too. I’m an old grandma but my libido is up and running and certainly I admit I’m still a highly sexual being. Stories where the sexual episodes flow naturally within the story and are integrated naturally INTO the storyline are terrific for me and I enjoy that. Sex in books can be graphic and detailed without becoming dirty. But I’ve never been able to equate sex with pain. For my tastes, this 50 SHADES OF GREY book is smut, and I don’t like to waste my time reading smut. For me, the smut overwhelmed whatever else was there. There’s a lot of this type of material out there, and more and more of it is appearing on large and small screens. I find the trend troublesome, but to each his or her own and I won’t judge anybody for their preferences in books or movies. We are individuals and have differing ideas about what we like, or don’t like. Makes life interesting and gives all of us much to talk about, as evidenced in all the hair salons everywhere, including mine!! 🙂
i’ve not read the book either – and from all i’ve heard had decided it was not something i wanted to spend my energy and time on – well, until your post today, anyway – 😉
My daughter was reading it while visiting last week. I asked her if it was good and she said no – don’t bother reading it. But I think she was on her third book! (Maybe she was just a little embarassed at the thought of her mother reading it…)
Funny!
I have not read 50 Shades but have been following the story since March when I saw the author on one of the morning talk shows. It’s great that this woman who was just writing on a fanfic site has become an uber millionaire doing what she loves. I’m a hairstylist and can confirm that talk of this book comes up in the salon at least once a day. The uncanny thing about this book is that woman you would never expect to be reading it are! I’m talking peoples grandmothers! I’m not convinced that I need to read it because I’ve heard so much about it if that makes sense. I do however enjoy hearing about it from clients, friends and watch their faces change to fifty shades of blush as they tell it. I think I’ll hold out for the movie and fill in the blanks with my imagination and what I’ve heard about the books.
She’s young, this author. I don’t think she’s even 30.
I don’t know her age but I do know she has two teenage boys and a husband. She apparently put her husband through the hoops researching her subject matter.
Two teen sons? Then she’s got to be older than 30!
According to wiki she was born in 1963 making her the same age as myself 49. She says writing the trilogy was her midlife crisis. I’d say it worked out pretty well for her crisis solved!
Wow, some midlife crisis!!
Yep, James even stated in an interview that it was her midlife crisis book.
May all women have such productive midlife issues!
Maybe the buzz about this book got started in hair salons!
No doubt 🙂
I read the book because my hairdresser told me about it and because of all the publicity hype and because it has been banned from libraries and I wanted to know for myself what all the hoopla was about in this day and age. I felt my moral compass tilting all over the place. Didn’t care for the hardcore porn. But, that’s my own take on it and I don’t consider myself a prude by any stretch of the imagination. Be that as it may, apparently millions of people are enjoying the book and I’m happy for them that they got something out of it that was beyond my grasp because it was covered in profoundly graphic porn stuff, and I’m happy for the success of its author. Not my kind of reading material, though. Again, just a matter of personal choice. I prefer romance with my sex, and vehemently object to S and M.
HBO shows this kind of porn all the time, especially in Game of Thrones.
I haven’t read the books, and I’ve been curious but certainly as an older person who thinks of herself as beyond all that sex stuff, I wasn’t really interested. I didn’t know the premise other than it was racy stuff. Maybe I will read the first one, after your review here. Maybe.
It’s worth a read if only to find out what all the hoopla is about.
Do you recommend men to read it? Would it help us “understand” women better?