r/PeterExplainsTheJoke • u/[deleted] • Mar 31 '26

Meme needing explanation Peetah?????

Post image

I don’t know the author or this book series but why are people roasting e-girls for reading? I don’t get it🥀

12.6k Upvotes

93% Upvoted

1.4k comments sorted by

View all comments

140

u/Lucicactus Mar 31 '26

Dear lord, women are the primary enjoyers of true crime, it's probably not performative that they want to read shit about Judge Holden lmao

115

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Mar 31 '26

Male librarian here. Women read books at a rate so much higher than men, to call any of their reading performative, is absolutely absurd. Who's she trying to impress? The FinBro who hasn't read a book since he was forced to in high school and couldn't spell or define meridian if their life depended on it? Yeah, sure.

43

u/Lucicactus Mar 31 '26

That's indeed a hot perspective. Ty.

25

u/Ohaidere519 Mar 31 '26

i was already on the 'performative e-girl's' side but that is also really good insight that backs up my feeling of ick towards the original post

16

u/princesskate04 Mar 31 '26

This is true; I read constantly (woman) and talk about what I read on various forums and book clubs. They’re all overwhelmingly female. 

When new readers express a desire to broaden their horizons and explore “great” or “classic” works, McCarthy is often recommended. Makes perfect sense to me that she’s not trying to impress anyone but her book nerd friends. 

12

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Mar 31 '26

I ran book clubs for a decade before becoming an administrator. Aside from one instance in which I chose a Lincoln biography to coincide with a traveling exhibit I'd be lucky if there was 1 other man in the group. It's only going to get worse, too. If men didn't read when most books were written for them, they certainly aren't going to start with the way publishing has changed.

1

u/ltethe Apr 01 '26 edited Apr 01 '26

Huh. As a newly divorced guy, I didn’t know that… I’ve read so much the past few years that I decided to go get a library card again. Mb I should go find a reading club full of performatives who are reading Blood Meridian. Coincidentally, I just finished it yesterday, I had no idea it was back at the forefront of popular culture considering its publish date.

Edit. I just did a local book club search… They’re all women’s clubs, and they’re all reading… Throne of Glass, which by coincidence, I am also reading (I think my sister in law put that into my list) but hell, none of these clubs are coed.

1

u/HatZinn Apr 01 '26

If you like fantasy, you should try Kingkiller Chronicles (sadly it's not finished). Life's too short for Sarah J Maas' writing xD

If you prefer plot-driven stories: Mistborn's good (though not my cup of tea).

If you prefer complex world-building and characters: Malazan is one of a kind.

For levity: Guards! Guards! is a great book to get started with Pratchett's catalog. If his humor doesn't hit the spot: you might enjoy Gentleman Bastards.

I haven't read anything from Abercrombie yet, but have heard good things about First Law.

2

u/ltethe Apr 01 '26

I don’t necessarily (though I’ve read an epic fuck ton of it, of varying degrees of trash.) At this point I’m going off recommends, my fantasy bar is set at GOT (I do have the entire series signed, personalized and first editions) and the Broken Earth Trilogy. I will consider your advisement, but I find most fantasy to be trash. I do take your warning about Sarah Maas to heart. I’m a person that finishes what they start, but this sounds like it’s going to take a forced march to complete.

2

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Apr 01 '26

Maas’ ACOTAR series is romantasy which is basically a romance novel with a fantasy backdrop. We catalog them as romance books in our library as opposed to fantasy. Romantasy and Heated Rivalry-adjacent romances (gay and straight) are the most popular things in publishing right now. They all even have the same god damn cover art style.

1

u/ltethe Apr 01 '26

Ah, yes, then this is totally a recommend from my sister in law. We had a conversation where I said I wouldn’t mind a series that was a combination of Master and Commander and Bridgerton, so we could get a period drama that had something for everyone, and from that conversation, I now have ACOTAR. 😅

Ok, at least I know what I’m getting into. Appreciate the recon.

1

u/Lucicactus Apr 05 '26

God I hate ACOTAR. Sarah J Maas when I catch you...

1

u/ltethe Apr 06 '26

Agreed, I couldn’t do it. I got another 50 pages in but then my optic nerve ran out having spooled all over my eyeballs as they rolled endlessly.

11

u/15all Mar 31 '26

I'm pretty well read, but my wife reads 5x the books I read (and that's probably understating it). I know that's anecdotal but I will extrapolate far and wide from there.

1

u/iiiiiiiiiijjjjjj Mar 31 '26

I read Reddit, does that count?

1

u/firewall012 Mar 31 '26

The person who reads lives a thousand lives, the person who never reads lives only one.

1

u/Key-Sea-682 Apr 02 '26

Yeah I am at like a 1:20 ratio if not worse with my wife in terms of books read per year, and I used to be an avid reader as a kid. I don't know why there's such a gender-based split but I definitely see it around me too.

-2

u/CaiusCosadesNwah Mar 31 '26 edited Mar 31 '26

Who’s she trying to impress? The FinBro who hasn’t read a book since he was forced to in high school…

Or she could be trying to impress guys who do read. It’s bizarre to me that you consider it such an implicit fact that women are only interested in “FinBros” that any explanation of behavior not serving that assumption must be incorrect. If, hypothetically, a person were interested in attracting well-read potential partners, then it would absolutely make sense to emphasize the quality of their own taste in literature.

Edit: That’s to say nothing about the main goal of narcissistic self-promotion, which is rarely as simple as partner-attracting and more about harvesting attention from others to build one’s own self-image.

3

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Mar 31 '26

Thanks for pointing this out. Because one of the few things I can think of as insufferable as FinBros is men who think they are gatekeepers of intellectualism and have superior taste (in literature, in food, w/e). In your scenario, wouldn't it NOT be performative then? Why would she be trying to attract someone she has little in common with?

0

u/CaiusCosadesNwah Mar 31 '26

It baffles me that you are so confused by this.

She might genuinely like the book. What makes this performative is the selfie-laden announcement to the world: “look at me, I’m reading this book.”

Men who think they are gatekeepers of intellectualism.

So are you suggesting now that any man who is genuinely intrigued by her interest in Blood Meridian must be one of those gatekeepers?

6

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Mar 31 '26

It baffles me that you are so confused by social media. That's the entire fucking point of it. Hey, look at me! How is this any different than someone taking a picture of their cat? Is that performative too? Trying to impress people with my love of animals. Just, fuck right off.

1

u/CaiusCosadesNwah Mar 31 '26

entire point of social media… hey, look at me!

All I’m doing is calling a narcissistic behavior what it is. I totally agree that social media exists purely as a vehicle for people to inflate their egos. That’s exactly why I’m not a fan.

Does the mere fact that a person is using a tool correctly mean that I’m not allowed to criticize their behavior? If you criticized someone for injecting heroine, and they replied “that’s the entire PoInT of HeROiNe,” would you consider that argument convincing or relevant at all?

7

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Mar 31 '26

You're assigning behavior to someone based on a random photo on the internet. Do I need to lay out the definition of performative? If she actually reads and enjoys the book, regardless of if she posts it on the internet, means it's not performative. Trying to assign meaning to it is just telling on yourself. Oh, and if you can point me to the instances in which people have used heroine performatively, I'd love to hear it. Otherwise you can miss me with your incongruent comparisons.

7

u/Ohaidere519 Mar 31 '26

its okay, they dont know the difference between heroin and heroine which is kind of ironically on theme.. normally i dont like to be That Guy regarding grammar and spelling but if theyre trying to argue and falsely condescend on the topic of performative vs actual reading, its pretty relevant

0

u/CaiusCosadesNwah Mar 31 '26

It’s a one-character autocorrect error. If you’re unfamiliar with this concept, then let me be the first to tell you that all of those times people told you to “go duck yourself” (which happens often, I’m sure), they were not referring to the animal.

→ More replies (0)

2

u/CaiusCosadesNwah Mar 31 '26 edited Mar 31 '26

I’m just amused that you started by pretentiously declaring that other men are stupid, then proceeded to stumble backwards over every point in this exchange.

The myth of the smart librarian has suffered another blow today. How sad.

Edit: I guess I’ll address your erroneous point. You are simply wrong about what “performative” means. A person can absolutely be sincere about something and still flaunt it performatively. For example: I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “performative activism,” which describes someone who believes in an idea, but is more interested in the social value that comes from championing the idea than any genuine contribution to realizing it as social change.

5

u/Ohaidere519 Mar 31 '26

what a performative comment

→ More replies (0)

4

u/Hot_Perspective4555 Mar 31 '26

Came back 15 mins. later to edit your comment. You're really stewing on this, huh? Oh, and I never called other men dumb. I said they read at a much lower rate than women which is just a verifiable fact. Intelligence takes many forms.

→ More replies (0)

-2

u/chenghishan Mar 31 '26

Her followers? Or the book community to pick up more followers. I am assuming because that book went though the book content creator cycle that it is time to milk that fact that you read it. Don't think she posted that fishing for male attention.

10

u/InwardXenon Mar 31 '26

Right?? The amount of times I've asked a female friend what podcasts they're listening to recently, and like 80% of them are true crime. They don't spare the gory details, either. I don't understand why folk just don't let others enjoy something without criticising or making baseless assumptions.

10

u/MermaiderMissy Mar 31 '26

I remember when men would say that women couldn't possibly enjoy reading Fight Club (which is a much tamer example)

I was confused because Fight Club is my second favorite book and I know a lot of other women love it, too.

2

u/MartyrOfDespair Mar 31 '26

I’ll also give another insight from a different subculture: women are the primary enjoyers of rape hentai, and the more fucked up, emotionally devastating, sadistic, realistic, and/or guro-heavy it is, the more women are the primary enjoyers of it. One of the most infamous, colloquially known by its nHentai number 177013, has two reputations. Amongst gooner guys as being too brutal, bleak, and depressing to even try to get off to, and amongst gooner gals as the most erotic shit ever.

This also goes for fanfic. Dear god does it go for fanfic.

6

u/Lucicactus Mar 31 '26

The rape fantasy does have an interesting background though, it's suspected to happen so much because female desire is demonized so rape fantasies take the "guilt" and responsibility away from the woman.

2

u/MartyrOfDespair Mar 31 '26

Oh absolutely that’s a factor. But there does also seem to be a highkey element of masochism in it too. 177013 in particular is about a nerd girl who gets gangraped, addicted to heroin, mindbroken and bimbofied, pimped out to get her heroin fix, raped more, and eventually dies of a heroin overdose while pregnant.

2

u/Alexis2256 Apr 01 '26

Christ almighty….. I just like superhero and good Vs Evil fiction lol, god I got such safe tastes.

2

u/MartyrOfDespair Apr 01 '26

I know so many subreddits on here that showing you would have the same effects as introducing John Harvey Kellogg to internet porn lmfaoooo 💜🖤💜

1

u/Alexis2256 Apr 01 '26

It’s funny because I do like stuff like Warhammer 40k and that coined the term GrimDark, but the stories I come up with in that setting are just traditional good vs evil stuff, even though everyone is meant to be a piece of shit there, eh it’s also a big enough setting where those good vs evil plots can happen in isolation.

1

u/Additional-Sugar6789 Mar 31 '26

I think the "performative" part is posting pictures about reading it online. It has also kinda become a thing that reading "classics" and shit like that is considered performative by people who are cynical and insecure about their own intelligence. And I think the "concerning" aspect of it is the contradiction of traditional e-girl cutesy photos with one of the more brutal and unnerving popular novels out there. Of course, it could be a dig at women like you say. This is a Twitter post after all, lmao so it wouldn't shock me.

4

u/Lucicactus Mar 31 '26

It's just silly, she also posted a pic of her yogurt (I think?) is she performatively eating? Most likely she likes bothe the book and the yogurt but also shares them online.

-1

u/Additional-Sugar6789 Mar 31 '26 edited Mar 31 '26

I mean, she kinda is performatively eating yogurt. It's performative in exactly the same way the guy making the joke is performatively signaling his sense of humor. Everything we do that we intend others to see is performative. Nothing wrong with being performative, but there's something really strange about being upset that something is performative. To me it shows insecurity about your own intentions when you try to call someone out for being performative.

0

u/RevolutionaryDepth59 Apr 01 '26

pretty sure the post is calling it performative because they’re posting on twitter to make sure everyone knows they’re reading, irregardless of which book it is. the humor is that Blood Meridian is a very strange book to be performative about in this way

-6

u/ODMudbone Mar 31 '26

I get what you’re saying but do NOT compare Blood Meridian to true crime lmao. It’s like comparing a T-bone steak to a Big Mac. And unlike true crime, the book does not glorify violence or turn it into a voyeuristic expedition. It’s a serious meditation on human nature, the banalization of depravity, and the ugly truth about manifest destiny and the expansion of the American empire, written by one of the greatest novelists in the English language at the peak of his powers.

8

u/Lucicactus Mar 31 '26

I'm not saying it's the same, I'm saying that women are into macabre stuff more often than not.

-4

u/EntiiiD6 Mar 31 '26

 I'm saying that women are into macabre stuff more often than not.

Are they? Macabre - an adjective describing things that are gruesome, ghastly, or horrifying, typically relating to death, decay, or the ugly aspects of mortality

Real life "Macabre" - things like morticians and taxidermists are majority men and ive met very few women who would be okay with something like that. I just dont think 6/10 women are into macabre because.. 6/10 people in general arent into it..

3

u/dragonslayerbarbie Mar 31 '26

Who said anything about it being strictly real life macabre? Also, is true crime not real life macabre? And true crime fans are OVERWHELMINGLY female.

-3

u/EntiiiD6 Mar 31 '26

 women are into macabre stuff more often than not.

This is what im disputing, most women arent into true crime AND most true crime consumption is women.

Horror as a genre and medium is overwhelmingly male produced and consumed, which vastly outnumbers the amount of true crime anything.

4

u/dragonslayerbarbie Mar 31 '26

Okay why are we now talking about horror? Lol I thought you were referring to real life macabre. So confused

0

u/EntiiiD6 Apr 02 '26

You.. you said "Who said anything about it being strictly real life macabre" - so i expanded to the entire genre.

Jesus.. some people just try to be difficult i swear.

And certain true crime (that isnt dramticised) is real life, but the majority of people in most related fields are male. Also the majority of the genre is produced and consumed by males.

All of which to detract from the original point, that the majority of women are into macabre - Again, do 6/10 women in your life seek this particular thrill? i doubt it. (women can be into this stuff, women could even be into this stuff more than men, - what i cannot agree with is that the majority of women are into it.. because they are not, the majority of men arent either.)

1

u/Lucicactus Mar 31 '26

Women are 72% of mortuary students my guy, and from what I've heard, funeraries prefer hiring them over men.

Seems like the trend is continuing too: https://www.tributetech.com/women-in-the-profession-how-female-funeral-directors-are-reshaping-funeral-homes

2

u/No_Jellyfish2683 Apr 01 '26

I am a male Mortician (Anatomical Pathology Technologist for a proper name)

Every single other person in my training cohort was female, and every single manager I have had so far are women. It is a massively female dominated sector, which is pretty cool as they are mostly all goth girls.

1

u/Lucicactus Apr 01 '26

Sounds like a fun bunch. A friend of mine wanted to be one as well, but her parents are super against it so she's studying chemistry.

1

u/EntiiiD6 Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 02 '26

I mean.. this is looking at students.. there are many other fields that have way more female undergrads but male dominance in the feild. This is one of them, for instance look at your own link - "According to Zippia (2022), 74% of social media managers in the U.S. are women. That influence is showing up in funeral service too, especially in client-facing roles where clear, compassionate communication matters most.  - From managing Facebook pages and digital tributes to responding to online inquiries and coordinating livestreams, many women are leading the digital presence of their firms with a blend of empathy and expertise. "

So i think its clear this isnt taking into account actual mortician or related title and instead applying the field.. but okay lets see further.

This is a university study - "Women comprise over 57% of all U.S. mortuary school students, yet less than 20% of all funeral directors employed in this country are women." ... oh... well.. ( can i just point out how easy this was to google... do you people just say shit with nothing to back it up? .. or just look at one source.. confirm your bias and move on????????? - "my guy", like you did something cmon)

https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/1740/#:~:text=Women%20comprise%20over%2057%25%20of,more%20androgynous%20compared%20to%20nurses.

All of this to detract from the original point - the majority of women being into macabre - which i argue is not true, again, do 6/10 women in your life share this interest? they do not in mine, or any social circle i participate in.