I remember a lot of dichotomies from my childhood. We moved often, making me the "new kid" trying to find my place among kids who had grown up together. Other distinctions introduced in school were the the kids with good grades versus the kids with lower grades. There were the kids who took Spanish to meet the language requirements versus the kids who took French. There were athletes versus nerds, and so forth. I understood the dichotomies, but didn't embrace them. In fact, some of my favorite stories are about proving such dichotomies to be false.
White Collar is a perfect example of what I mean. There's a gulf between the FBI characters and the criminals. Some of the characters -- Agent Kramer, for instance -- believe that the line between FBI and criminal cannot be crossed. However, Neal has to balance that line, helping the FBI solve cases without alienating his criminal contacts who provide information he needs. Even Mozzie crosses the line occasionally. My favorite moments of the show were the ones that proved the dichotomy false -- where we see Neal as a valued partner at the FBI. No wonder that's a major aspect of the Caffrey Conversation AU.
Psych comes to mind as another example. According to Shawn's father, cops are the real crime solvers, while psychics and PIs merely get in the way. Shawn wants to solve crimes, but realizes that he wasn't cut out to follow in his father's footsteps as a cop. Like Neal in White Collar, he follows an unconventional path, breaking expectations.
And what about Star Trek? You've got emotional humans and logical Vulcans, and then you have Spock. He won fans and hearts as he navigated the middle ground.
One of my favorite authors is Jayne Ann Krentz (who also writes as Jayne Castle and Amanda Quick), and several of her novels explore similar themes. Often there are characters, families, or even entire societies that are divided into groupings such as artsy versus business-oriented, or creative versus logical, or romantic versus practical. Typically, the hero and heroine come from opposite sides of this dichotomy and they learn that there is strength in embracing both aspects of their natures.
It's probably not a surprise that the novel I'm writing explores a similar theme. Most people where my main character Zach grew up believe that folks from Arden are normal, and those from Prime are weird and not to be trusted -- especially if they claim to have psychic powers. People from Prime believe a different dichotomy, that psychic powers are real, and that having those powers makes them superior to ignorant Ardens. Zach was raised on Arden, but his father was from Prime. He's challenged to find his own path, especially after his psychic talents emerge.
In my novel, as in the stories and TV shows I mentioned, success comes not from one side of the dichotomy winning over the other, but by members from each side learning to compromise. They see each other as individuals, rather than as members of the other side. As they become friends and learn to trust and value each other, the rigid lines separating them start to melt away. Resentment and fear are replaced with accepting and even celebrating what each person brings to situation.
It's a tall order, but that's what I want to accomplish in my novel. Or at least, I want to end with Zach and his friends seeing that it's possible to get there, and making a commitment to lead the way.
And related to that goal, Happy Pride month!
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