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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   32178 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of January 23, 2023

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The antisemitic angle is that, like, one asks "why are the rich evil guys living in squalor?", and while the surface answer is "that's a generic evil trope", the underlying origin of the trope that would have a scheming, wealthy villain who lives in squalor is negative stereotypes about Jews.

Is it?

Slytherins aren't living in squalor - the dungeon ambience is merely an aesthetic.

I have never heard of a "wealthy villains living in squalor" trope, and I struggle to come up with examples.

Also, even if a trope was originally based in antisemitism, if it since has entered the cultural background, and no longer has a connection to jews, because most people are no longer aware of the origin and it doesn't match their own image of jews, then I'd say it's not antisemitic anymore.

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