Bodice Rippers

I completely agree!  It's been a while since I've read one where the hero tore off her blouse, but I've seen a few recently where he ripped off her panties.  Even that would make me angry--it's hard to find comfortable underwear!  I'd like to keep mine intact, please! 

Also, I feel like fabric is tougher than the authors realize...wouldn't it be somewhat uncomfortable having someone pull on your clothes hard enough that they rip?  I'm thinking particularly about elastic-waist panties...that elastic snapping back on you...ouch!  Or...wait, is this just me admitting that I don't wear sexy enough underwear?

Your scene with the heroine's reaction to the $50 blouse being ripped off her would be awesome...I'd love to see that in a romcom.   

Heh, now I'm picturing a further scene...the hero yanking and yanking..."No, wait, I've almost got it...ouch...wait...let me try my teeth...oh crap, that was the one I needed the root canal on..." and then an emergency trip to the dentist...SO romantic!

Jeepers, you've already got me laughing... What a good start, eh? *grin*

I guess the spontaneity would be lost, if he had to run for the scissors...

I've read a couple of books where panties have been torn off, and my thought is always ow, yes. Buttons on blouses don't bug me as bad, but panties?

 Mine don't rip that easy. Unless they're made of paper or that edible fruit leather stuff, I don't think any do.

LOL  I imagine I wouldn't care all that much about a pair of panties!  And in the right setting............    Ok, going to shut up now!  LMAO

It's been a while for me too(to have read a story where their clothes are literally ripped off).  What you say makes total sense and makes me laugh.  As someone who is conscious of 'money' I would tend to agree with you... that fab lover would be buying me a new shirt. 

Cole 

Julz  ...... for some reason your font change in your signature didn't close ...... at the end of the stuff you typed into your signature section on your Profile, you need to tell it to revert back to the original font ...... I think the tag </font>  will work there   ...... for some reason, the last font change if not closed/reverted back to original, affects the next post made after

note sure if I made any sense there!  LOL

Hmmm....Maybe we should wear our painting clothes on our dates and save a step.

This is the greatest discussion ever, I think. I'm loving everyone's comments!

I love Ellen's idea of changing clothes (heh, and "walk the dog worthy).  Kelley: definitely, someone who doesn't mind my flannel pants is a keeper! 

Kathy: The emergency scissors & sewing kit is a great idea.  You should patent that and sell it...

My thought/concern is always: how is she going to get home with all that torn clothing?

Thankfully that problem will be solved with Kathy/Ellen's sewing kit with the spare clothing.

Personally I don't think this type of action is sexy at all. It would kill it for me if that happened. I think I'd ask him to leave, ot take his shirt and high tail it outa there.

However, if I had a sewing kit, I might make him wait until I fixed it, or better yet make him do it. Hehehehe...

In reality I'm Sadie Sadie Married Lady, so all my date worthy clothes became too small after the 2nd kid came along. I'm more the dog walking wordrobe now-a-days. And Hubby doesn't complain about it, he doesn't like it, I know, but he doesn't complain.

To date, he hasn't ever ripped anything off my body, except maybe lint or fuzz or something unwanted, not my clothes.

That's when you borrow the guy's shirt Karen!  LOL

I agree!  Not attractive, not money-wise and not very likely!  I don't buy clothes that just fall apart with one tug.  Dude, you can't wait 20 seconds?  Or he could be a rugged cowboy with a Buck knife in his pocket to cut the bra and panties off.  Nope, does nothing for me...  Let's see, put the shoe on the other foot.  Grab a hold of his jockey shorts and try to rip them off.  Not gonna happen.  Not attractive either.

To funny! That would teach'em! LOL

how have you managed to miss all the books with these type of scenes in them?  Even in modern settings, this type of scene has appeared in a great deal of books; hence, the nickname of bodice ripper.

And yes, I agree, it would be quite risky in the real modern world to do such a thing but often books don't cater to the dictates of the real world.  This is why those of us who find the ripping of clothes in a sex scene annoying as we would be pissed over the loss of our clothes and the whole moment would be totally ruined!   I suppose this is somebody's idea of a good fantasy as you mentioned, Vince, but to go into all that planning sure sounds like it would ruin the whole idea of having a fantasy to me.  But since it's not a fantasy of mine, maybe I'm just being too logical.

 Regardless, this thread has been hysterical and I will probably erupt into uncontrolled giggles the next time I encounter one of these scenes in a book.  Hope no one asks why....  

I guess the question of bodice rippers just depends. As a married woman, it can be so easy to get caught up in everything else other than romance and quality time between work, domestic things, pets (and I don't even have children!) that sometimes I do have fantasies of just being able to forget all the responsibilities and practicalities of life....although I think throwing out everything on my to do list would be more sexy and liberating than having clothes ripped off! Considering how much I HATE to shop for clothes or anything other than books, in real life, I would not be that happy at the idea of having to shop afterwards. In books, I just think it is a genre convention and just skim over it or perhaps notice if it is well done and stands out.

I did just finish reading a great undressing scene by Carol Townend in An Honorable Rogue (Medieval historical) that has innocence, playfulnessness and sensuality all in one. In terms of reading, I guess I tend to gravitate more to that style in reading.  Also that scene told me more about the characters, developed previously, but developed/fleshed out (no pun intended) in the undress scene.  I guess I get bored with scenes that just seem out of context from the whole book?

I was searching the boards and just found this thread and the topic and comments are hysterical. Thanks for the laugh, everyone. I have to admit as well that I have loved the old bodice-rippers set in the past (Johanna Lindsey) But I like the scenes in a book. The man that ever rips my clothes will get a bill to replace them.

Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?

You know, this is the same as me loving the arrogant heros of old as well. Works on the page and in the context of the story with that heroine, but in my reality where I'm the heroine, I wouldn't want to deal with an Alpha male 24/7

That is a good point that sometimes what we enjoy in a book is not anything we'd ever enjoy in real life. 

 And this whole thread has been HILARIOUS!

When I was in college in the late1960’s & early 1970's, and the feminists were at their most outspoken stage (the bra-burning stage) “bodice rippers” was the ultimate term used to putdown romances. These feminists called all romances “bodice rippers”, they said romances were bad for women, that they pitted woman against woman, that they taught women to be subservient, that the key to happiness was a good man and a family. Comments like these, from fellow philosophy students who I knew were intelligent, kept me from reading any romances for decades.  It wasn’t until I read a few Linda Howard novels that I began to learn that those 1960 feminists probably never read any romances.

Is it really OK to use the term “bodice rippers” today among romance fans?   

BTW, I’ve read mostly contemporary series romances – very few historical romances. Also, I always thought that the bodice got ripped in the action going on, like trying to escape, and not ripped by the hero in passion.

Anyway, I still can’t bring myself to say “bodice ripper” out loud. But I do love this thread!

Thanks,  

Vince

I have to say that I don't really mind reading these kind of scenes. I do get lost in the books. But in real life, I don't think it would really happen too much.

Margie :)