| Revision as of 18:32, 12 February 2007 edit216.196.140.138 (talk) →Israeli army← Previous edit | Revision as of 20:41, 14 February 2007 edit undoHarmil (talk | contribs)8,207 edits →Religious objections: Expanded on some of the controversy and the specific essays that touched off much of the debate.Next edit → | ||
| Line 6: | Line 6: | ||
| {{See also|Patricia Pulling}} | {{See also|Patricia Pulling}} | ||
| ]'' by ], a girl gets involved in ] through the "occult training" she receives while playing D&D. Later she converts to ] and rejects the game, burning the materials.]] | ]'' by ], a girl gets involved in ] through the "occult training" she receives while playing D&D. Later she converts to ] and rejects the game, burning the materials.]] | ||
| ⚫ | At various times in its history, Dungeons & Dragons has received negative publicity for alleged promotion of such practices as ], ], ], and ]. In the 1980s especially, some religious groups accused the game of encouraging interest in sorcery and demonic creatures. |
||
| ⚫ | At various times in its history, Dungeons & Dragons has received negative publicity for alleged promotion of such practices as ], ], ], and ]. In the ] especially, some religious groups accused the game of encouraging interest in sorcery and demonic creatures. Throughout the ], many of these criticisms have been aimed specifically at "Dungeons & Dragons", but touch on the genre of ] ]s as a whole. | ||
| ⚫ | The concept of Dungeons & Dragons as somehow demonic was also linked to the concept of ] (SRA), in that both presumed the existence of large, organized Satanic cults and societies. Sources such as the famous '']'' tract from ] portray D&D as a recruitment tool for these organizations. |
||
| ⚫ | The concept of Dungeons & Dragons as somehow demonic was also linked to the concept of ] (SRA), in that both presumed the existence of large, organized Satanic cults and societies. Sources such as the famous '']'' tract from ] portray D&D as a recruitment tool for these organizations. | ||
| ⚫ | The controversy |
||
| ===The Schnoebelen articles=== | |||
| Chick Publications also published ]'s two essays, ''Straight Talk on Dungeons and Dragons''<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.chick.com/articles/dnd.asp | title=Straight Talk on Dungeons and Dragons | year=1984 | author=Schnoebelen, William | publisher=]}}</ref> and ''Should a Christian Play Dungeons & Dragons?''<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.chick.com/articles/frpg.asp | title=Should a Christian Play Dungeons & Dragons? | year=2001? | publisher=]}}</ref> Published over a decade apart, these essays attempt to portray Dungeons & Dragons as a tool for Satantic and ] groups to introduce concepts and behaviors that are seen as contrary to Christian teaching and morality. | |||
| The first article, which cited Patricia Pulling as a source. summarized D&D as "a feeding program for occultism and witchcraft violates the commandment of ]. 5:22 'Abstain from all appearance of evil.'" It continued on to suggest that rituals described in the game were actually capable of summoning demons and other real-world effects, though the books themselves describe no such detailed mechanics for any spell or ritual. It also took elements of the books out of context. For example, "the ] gives the celebrated ] as an example of a real historical person that exhibited D&D charisma!" The book never suggests that Hitler is "celebrated", nor that he is a model of an acceptable D&D character. | |||
| The second article took a softer approach, and refrained from statements of the original such as "pain and torture are heavily involved in sadistic, sexual situations stresses the defilement of innocence". Instead, it focused on the contrast between a realistic, Christian world-view and the fantasy worldview of Dungeons & Dragons, suggesting that, "being exposed to all these ideas of magic to the degree that the game requires cannot but help have a significant impact on the minds of the players." | |||
| ===The Hickman articles=== | |||
| ], a prolific author of Dungeons & Dragons materials, has written many articles about the ethics of Dungeons & Dragons from the point of view of Christianity. His ''Ethics in Fantasy: Morality and D&D / Part 1: That Evil Game!''<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.trhickman.com/Intel/Essays/Ethic1.html | title=Ethics in Fantasy: Morality and D&D / Part 1: That Evil Game! | year=1988 | author=Hickman, Tracy}}</ref> details a number of concerns about the ethics surrounding Dungeons & Dragons, but also outlines a number of the hurdles in gamers and non-gamers communicating over these topics. | |||
| ===TSR's reaction=== | |||
| ⚫ | The controversy led TSR to remove references to ]s, ]s, and other potentially controversial supernatural monsters from the 2nd Edition of ''AD&D'' (Ward 1990). Many of these exclusions were not returned to the game until the release of the 3rd Edition in 2000. And in fact, a few 3rd Edition products have addressed demons and devil-worship far more explicitly than materials from previous editions. The more 'extreme' manuals, such as the '']'' and the '']'', bear a "For Mature Audiences Only" label. | ||
| ==Israeli army== | ==Israeli army== | ||
Revision as of 20:41, 14 February 2007
As the first and most popular role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) has received significant attention in the media and in popular culture. Some of this publicity has been negative, especially during the game's early years in the 1970's and early 1980's. Because the term D&D is sometimes used as a metonym for all types of role-playing games, some of the controversies regarding D&D actually pertain to role-playing games in general, or to the overall literary genre of Fantasy as a whole.
Some of the controversies that have arisen concern the game itself and its alleged impact on those who play it, and others concern business issues at the game's original publisher, TSR, Inc., now owned by Wizards of the Coast.
Religious objections
See also: Patricia Pulling
At various times in its history, Dungeons & Dragons has received negative publicity for alleged promotion of such practices as devil worship, witchcraft, suicide, and murder. In the 1980s especially, some religious groups accused the game of encouraging interest in sorcery and demonic creatures. Throughout the history of roleplaying games, many of these criticisms have been aimed specifically at "Dungeons & Dragons", but touch on the genre of fantasy roleplaying games as a whole.
The concept of Dungeons & Dragons as somehow demonic was also linked to the concept of Satanic ritual abuse (SRA), in that both presumed the existence of large, organized Satanic cults and societies. Sources such as the famous Dark Dungeons tract from Chick Publications portray D&D as a recruitment tool for these organizations.
The Schnoebelen articles
Chick Publications also published William Schnoebelen's two essays, Straight Talk on Dungeons and Dragons and Should a Christian Play Dungeons & Dragons? Published over a decade apart, these essays attempt to portray Dungeons & Dragons as a tool for Satantic and New Age groups to introduce concepts and behaviors that are seen as contrary to Christian teaching and morality.
The first article, which cited Patricia Pulling as a source. summarized D&D as "a feeding program for occultism and witchcraft violates the commandment of I Ths. 5:22 'Abstain from all appearance of evil.'" It continued on to suggest that rituals described in the game were actually capable of summoning demons and other real-world effects, though the books themselves describe no such detailed mechanics for any spell or ritual. It also took elements of the books out of context. For example, "the Dungeon Master's Guide gives the celebrated Adolph Hitler as an example of a real historical person that exhibited D&D charisma!" The book never suggests that Hitler is "celebrated", nor that he is a model of an acceptable D&D character.
The second article took a softer approach, and refrained from statements of the original such as "pain and torture are heavily involved in sadistic, sexual situations stresses the defilement of innocence". Instead, it focused on the contrast between a realistic, Christian world-view and the fantasy worldview of Dungeons & Dragons, suggesting that, "being exposed to all these ideas of magic to the degree that the game requires cannot but help have a significant impact on the minds of the players."
The Hickman articles
Tracy Hickman, a prolific author of Dungeons & Dragons materials, has written many articles about the ethics of Dungeons & Dragons from the point of view of Christianity. His Ethics in Fantasy: Morality and D&D / Part 1: That Evil Game! details a number of concerns about the ethics surrounding Dungeons & Dragons, but also outlines a number of the hurdles in gamers and non-gamers communicating over these topics.
TSR's reaction
The controversy led TSR to remove references to demons, devils, and other potentially controversial supernatural monsters from the 2nd Edition of AD&D (Ward 1990). Many of these exclusions were not returned to the game until the release of the 3rd Edition in 2000. And in fact, a few 3rd Edition products have addressed demons and devil-worship far more explicitly than materials from previous editions. The more 'extreme' manuals, such as the Book of Vile Darkness and the Book of Exalted Deeds, bear a "For Mature Audiences Only" label.
Israeli army
The Israeli army has an official policy that frowns on the playing of D&D by Israeli soldiers. Their position is that game play makes players "detached from reality and susceptible to influence,” automatically lowering their security clearance. Due to these pressures, most soldiers that play D&D hide this fact.
Mazes and Monsters
Main article: Steam tunnel incidentDungeons & Dragons has also been plagued by rumors of players having difficulty separating fantasy and reality, even leading to schizophrenia. The novel Mazes and Monsters and especially the 1982 CBS made-for-TV movie adaptation helped fuel these rumors, particularly since they were based on media coverage of a real incident, the disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III.
Egbert was a bright but very socially awkward teenager who had played D&D before entering college (prematurely at the age of 16). He went missing for nearly a month in 1979, allegedly after entering steam tunnels under Michigan State University. Egbert had been known to be a member of a group at MSU that had played a proto-LARP version of D&D. William Dear, a private investigator searching for James, initially linked his disappearance to Dungeons & Dragons, which the media widely reported. Dear wrote the 1985 book, The Dungeon Master, about the case and revealed that James' disappearance was not related to Dungeons & Dragons. According to Dear, Egbert had run away following a failed suicide attempt; he would later successfully commit suicide in 1980 at the age of 17.
Business disputes at TSR
See also: TSR, Inc. and Gary GygaxThe game's commercial success led to lawsuits initiated in 1979 regarding distribution of royalties between D&D co-creators Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax. Specifically at issue were the royalties for AD&D, a product for which TSR did not acknowledge Arneson's intellectual property claims. Those suits were settled out of court by 1981.
Gygax himself became embroiled in a political struggle for control of TSR and disputes related to the company’s deteriorating financial situation in the early 1980s. The disagreements culminated in a court battle and Gygax’s decision to sell his ownership interest in the company in 1985.
Licensing and trademark violations
Early in the game's history, TSR summarily revoked the license to create AD&D-compatible items it had previously granted to the publishing company Judges Guild. TSR's action was a primary cause of the smaller publisher's decision to cease operations in the early 1980s.
Grimoire Games, which published David A. Hargrave's multi-volume Arduin series, had no such license. When presented with a cease and desist order regarding the use of TSR's trademarks, Grimoire was forced to rely on white-out and typing correction tape to mask its use of AD&D references in subsequent printings of the Arduin series.
TSR itself ran afoul of intellectual property law with respect to the Cthulhu Mythos and Melnibonéan Mythos it had included in early versions of the Deities & Demigods manual. These problems were ultimately resolved by excising the material from later editions of the book. Similarly, references in early TSR publications to certain creatures from J.R.R. Tolkien's mythical Middle-earth were also removed or altered due to intellectual property concerns. For example, TSR replaced all references to the race of Hobbits in D&D with their alternate name, Halflings - which was also coined by Tolkien but judged by TSR to be non-infringing.
See also
References
- Schnoebelen, William (1984). "Straight Talk on Dungeons and Dragons". Chick Publications.
- "Should a Christian Play Dungeons & Dragons?". Chick Publications. 2001?.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|year=(help)CS1 maint: year (link) - Hickman, Tracy (1988). "Ethics in Fantasy: Morality and D&D / Part 1: That Evil Game!".
- ^ Greenberg, Hanan. "Army frowns on Dungeons and Dragons". ynetnews.com. Retrieved 2007-02-01.