I was talking to some friends the other day and one of them mentioned that she was thinking of reading a book I had already read. I recommended it to her and mentioned I really liked the series because each book focused on a different arranged marriage situation in the same universe.

Later on, another friend who was present during the conversation said they though arranged marriages in fiction were problematic.

I wanted to know what your thoughts are on this trope. Is it inherently problematic? Can it be done well? What are some reasons you like/dislike this trope?

And before anyone mentions it, yes I know there have been similar discussion on r/romancebooks. I specifically posted here because I want diverse opinions. Not just that of romance readers.

  • thequeenpi@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    I didn’t think it’s inherently problematic, it comes back to how consent is handled by the characters. There are “love match” books that handle consent between the main characters terribly and arranged marriage books that are great with consent.

    Someone said it in another comment, arranged marriages aren’t necessarily forced marriages.