Why are fantasy stories written by women treated like guilty pleasures while male-centered fantasy is praised as genius world-building? In this episode of Fed Up, But Figuring It Out, we dive into the double standards surrounding romance, fantasy, and “women’s literature.”

From Harry Potter and Percy Jackson to Throne of Glass, this episode explores how the stories we grow up with shape empathy, emotional literacy, and whose perspectives are considered “universal.” We unpack why women’s fantasy is so often dismissed as “porn,” while violent or sexually explicit male fantasy rarely faces the same criticism.

This conversation also examines the neuroscience and cultural impact of porn versus romance novels, the role of emotional intimacy in women’s storytelling, the patriarchy present in reading culture, and why reading female perspectives matters for everyone, not just women.

Drawing on feminist thought, reading statistics, BookTok culture, and personal reflections as an avid fantasy reader, this episode asks a bigger question: what does it say about our society when stories centered on women’s emotions, safety, and desire are mocked instead of respected?

Sources:

Carroll, J. (2023, April 18). Porn Gap: Difference in men and women pornography patterns. Wheatley Institute. https://wheatley.byu.edu/family/porn-gap-difference-in-men-and-women-pornography-patterns

Iyengar, S. (2025, January). The Men-Women Split in Reading is Real—and Persists Amid Historical Rate Declines. National Endowment for the Arts. https://www.arts.gov/stories/blog/2025/men-women-split-reading-real-and-persists-amid-historical-rate-declines

Snitow, A. B. (1994). Mass Market Romance: Pornography for Women Is Different. In Living With Contradictions (1st ed.). Chapter, Routledge.

Tylka, T. L. (2015). No harm in looking, right? Men’s pornography consumption, body image, and well-being. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 16(1), 97–107. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0035774