Would you go to the freak show?

[Junkenstein]

Uhm. This is the kinda question that come outta my head on a hot sunday.

I was listening to a stanhope CD, while doing errands and he did a routine about Freaks. How once, when there used to be freak shows they actually had a job, could claim to have a position in society and in his words "could fling their own poo at the customers and not get fired".

Now the 900 pounds woman is made fun of on the papers ìand in podcasts but there's no business behind it.

So what if today's freaks decided, on their own will, to expose themselves for the public, handle their own image and gain something out of people voyeurism, instead of being exploited for free on the internet, what would you do?

Remember the three magic words: in. this. economy.

[BrianAlt]

You left off the option, "meh."

[Junkenstein]

Everybody would vote that: Meh is this generation answer to everything.

Also, if you dont care about a voting, you dont vote. Voting an option that says i dont care it's stupid and redundant.

[marina]

I voted that I would go, but I would probably not go more than once. Freaks are fascinating, but I would feel super weird. I'd rather go to a freak panel, or a freak parade.

[Junkenstein]

I completely changed my mind on the issue when i read a memoir written by a "freak" that speaks about their days in the carnies.

Most of them never got to a very old age, but apparently they were very happy with doing what they did.

I just find weird how modern society seems to be as much as fascinated with the grotesque or the morbid but has to hide it behind a veil of false compassion.

I refuse that all the pictures and docs or youtube videos on malformed people, super obese persons and everything else is all done after a moved heart.

At least in the old times people were honest about their voyeurism and the persons on the other side git paid. Now they get spread all over the placed and have to deal with fake sympathy and pity too.

[BrianAlt]

Originally Posted by Junkenstein

Everybody would vote that: Meh is this generation answer to everything.

Also, if you dont care about a voting, you dont vote. Voting an option that says i dont care it's stupid and redundant.

Which generation? I'm about 10 years older than you.

I respect your right to your poll.

As an answer, I don't really care about whether it is right or wrong. If I was on vacation in let's say Las Vegas and I came upon a freak show, would I go in? Maybe I would if I wasn't doing anything else or maybe I wouldn't cause I didn't care or maybe I would for the fun or maybe I wouldn't because I was busy with something else.

I don't see that choice.

[Junkenstein]

Originally Posted by BrianAlt

Which generation? I'm about 10 years older than you..

When i say "this generation" i say it as a substitute for "people". I cant tell a generation from the other really.

I meant that anyone's answer to most question is "Meh": would be mine too, because i have no straight answer to any scenario. But i think that when you should get to the heart of any question and answer accordingly.

If you had the possibility to pay to look at deformed or grotesque peoplw qould you do it? Would you be repulsed?

I'm questioning the point that the internet is littered with pics and movies of that sort of stuff yet everyone calls out those shows as horrible and immoral, where they could actually grant a way for "different people" to exploit people's morbid curiosity instead of being exploited.

I'm not talking about real life reactions. If i was i should put the option "Well, if i had a train to pick i wouldnt probably go. Also it depends on the price. What type of pop corn do they have?"....

[standardman]

I already work in Manchester.

[pixie]

I think I would go, but also probably not more than once and I probably would be a bit squicked out at going in just because of the extremity of whatever it is that has them in the show in the first place. I'd feel bad about it, but it's true. I also wouldn't be one of those people who point and make fun of them- taking advantage of a medical defect doesn't make them "not human."

Hey, now I'm curious- what is that book mentioned talking about a "freak" describing his days in a freak show? It sounds like it'd be worth a read.

[Dean from Australia]

I have the book "The True History Of The Elephant Man" by Michael Powell and Peter Ford in my collection. Unlike the 1980 David Lynch film where it was assumed that he was treated very poorly, Joseph Merrick was apparently looked after very well by his employers and did actually make a tidy sum of money from his work as a fairground freak.

Outwardly, I would say no...but in truth I probably would...