Dr Hugo Grief

[The_Wallmaker]

Y was he South African? I found that offensive that he made it out to sound like that all white South AQfricans are rasist!

[kirstymd]

Idon't know. Maybe he wanted it to teach you something about Africa?? I dunno to be honest. Didd anyone else find it offensive?

[Rainbowstar]

there is no specific reason whe villains get chose.  jsut that they need to have a reason to do what they do...

it's like asking why the bad guy in eagle trike was a russian...if he was supposed to be from a communist country that got corrupted he could have been all sorts of things, chinese, cuban, couple of south american ones...yet he chose russian.  i guess it's part of the stereotypical thing, and the fact that everyone knows russia used to be this communist great power and is now pretty much destroyed completely.

i suppose it's the same with the south africa thing...just stereotypes, because the apartheid struggle and stuff is still so fresh in people's mind.  He could have used a german, or anyone else, they could all be this racist....

I'm sure he really did not do this to offend anyone.  Just as i'm also sure there are still russian communists, german nazi's and south african white racists.  However anyone with a little bit of intelligence will realise that this does NOT mean that all russians are communists, all germans are nazi's or all south african white people are racist.  It was defiantely not the feel i got when reading the book

[The_Wallmaker]

Wow. you no alot. Are you from SA?

[Rainbowstar]

no, I'm from Belgium.  Trust me, we're the bad guys in plenty of books and films...and in real life too  the biggest weapons manufacturer is eblgian

[kirstymd]

Maybe we should get back to topic people? AH wanted us to believe that Hugo Grief came from SA but I am sure he didn't mean for it to be offensive. Out of curiousity, how did you find it offensive The_Wallmaker

[The_Wallmaker]

Not me personally but a friend of mine did.

[kirstymd]

Oh, I see.

[The_Wallmaker]

Ya. how did you get the pic under your name?

[Dave]

http://www.anthonyhorowitz.com/mxboard/viewtopic.php?t=1459

Inferius' guide to avatars.

[The_Wallmaker]

Thanx. that'll help.    

Im stilll cofused!!        

[SweetStar]

well i think he wanted to incorporate some other-worldy aspects into his novel. he wanted his readers to become aware of what has happened before in the world - make them aware so that they may never forget, so that they can learn from other peoples mistakes. so that they can judge, understand and realize what has happened before and how they can make it better for those to come.

the thing is - people in the apartheid times did commit all those horrendous things. most people - infact soo many people that the entire country was run by whites who found no objection to it. at the time live human autopsies did take place - on black people.

dr grief was a stereotype of this - but not an incorrect one. mr horowitz just chose the worst, most evil person of south africa. and dr grief was that person.

look - even stellenbosch is poignant - i mean do u know that stellenbosch university was once such a rascist school that the professor teaching there who was black was demoted to gardener?!

the thing is - mr horowitz showcased the contrast from what was and what is. alex rider is british - his ancestors were probably fore-runners in the rascist regime of most of the british colonized couuntries. dr grief is a leftover of it. alex rider is a non-rascist and dr grief is. the difference you see? both are white

so i dont think his rascist to south african whites.

[ARALEXRIDER14]

No matter where he puts a bad villian from, people will immediately call him a rascist! It doesn't matter in my opinion, it's just fiction!

[SweetStar]

actually 'its just fiction' isnt sufficient. i for one get really annoyed when most of the books i read always portray 'middle east' or 'palestine' or 'Islaamists' as the 'terrorists' this is a really annoying stereotype because, if half of the truth was revealed of the secret services of both britian and america - we'd know who the bad guys are.

fiction influences everyone - tell me - how many times a week do you watch tv? or go to the movies? or read a book? humans spend more time absorbing untruths from fiction and applying it to everyday life than any other form of guideline.

anthony horowitz did not use a british rascist person as his character because his books are to sell to a majority of british people - who, may not be pleased or slightly uncomfortable with their ancestors faults being spilled out in public. embarassing moments of the past should stay in the past - except when it comes to defaming another countries past - then there is no problem.

however - i may have no problem with the anthony horowitz books but the wallmaker - who i suspect is a white south african may feel the sensitivity of the situation - feel as though his side of the story was and will be never heard. the same way i feel and the same way you - dont. probably because you havent been on the recieving end of this kind of nonsence.

[ianreturns]

If AH made an Aremian villain, I would be proud.