Doe Fandom

Next we have the real deals, the official cosplayers. These people work on their cosplays for month’s sometimes even years! The costumes they create make themselves look like they are stepping right out of a comic or movie set. They have a goal to make there costume as screen accurate as possible, which takes tremendous dedication and work. Some of these cosplays will leave you breathless and are so realistic that you almost think they are from our

As technology becomes increasingly popular and becomes the norm. People become more isolated and less likely to interact with those around them. But when football season starts you find more people interacting with people to share a common interest or dislike for a particular team or player. And though some will still use social sites to do this from the privacy of their bedrooms. Most will do it in social places such as sports bars, friends house’s, and even in the comforts of their own living rooms almost as to feel like they have home field

In this recent article, “Celebrity Culture Is Natural and Can Be Beneficial”, David Cox (2015) argues about the obsession that many people, mainly Americans, have to achieve fame or to know more about other famous people. He also talks about some interesting social benefits, such “bonding people together and leading to great social engagement”. In addition, he explains about the dangers of fandom, ways people may leave loneliness towards fame, and a comparison or similarity between celebrity and religion.

17-19). For instance, this view insists fans cannot make distinctions between fantasy and reality which opposes the boundaries of dominant ideologies on reading practices (Jenkins, 1992, p. 17). Moreover, these fans are criticised for their readings strategies as they use readings practices of high cultural texts for texts that are of popular mass culture (Jenkins, 1992, p. 17). Case studies revolving around this perspective might be similar to the upheaval caused when a Harry Potter fan sexualised Emma Watson, the actress of the character Hermione. The fan took images of the actress and edited her face onto various child-pornographic images which is definitely an eroticised version of fan culture.

That sense of abnormality within the fandom universe is common when first entering it. The notion of shipping to fictional characters is strange. Simon During, a literary critic, understands that sense of not seeming popular in his research. He brings up the idea of popular when he says that “[c]ultural studies can provide space for, and knowledge of, the multiple audiences and communities who, in various combinations, vote, buy records, watch television and films etc. without ever fitting the ‘popular’” (During 20). The transition of becoming a fangirl/fanboy through shipping can relate to aspect of ‘popular’ because it can relate with the term ‘normality’. Participating in the traditional fandom activities can define who a person is, whether he/she is ‘normal’ or ‘different’.

American society is filled with a variety of entertainment sources: sports, music, literature, films, etc. With each of these entertainment sources comes, in some capacity, a fan base. Almost every person in America or even the world, if asked, would be able to list at least one thing they are a fan of. How did this idea of a “fandom” subculture become so apparent in American society? In today’s society, people are easily able to be informed on their favorite celebrities and sports teams. The media feeds the passion people have for the entertainment industry and has created this idea that the public should be informed on every detail of celebrities’ lives. The creation of award shows such as the Oscars and the American Music Awards further

Fandom is the state or state of being a fanatic of somebody or something - the aficionados of a specific individual, group, anecdotal arrangement, and so on., viewed all in all as a group or subculture. (I.e. Breaking Bad fandom, Twilight fandom or Harry Potter fandom). There are a wide range of meanings of what it intends to be a "fan." Although there is some scholarly civil argument encompassing the meaning of fandom itself, this work will utilize the definition that it includes a "group of individuals sorted out socially around their common energy about a popular society question or protests" (Baym, 2007). Fandom ponders at dedications to questions in differing territories, for example, music, TV, film, writing, sports, comic books, and computer games, to give some

Everyone is a fan of something, whether it is a band, a sports team, a television show, or a certain brand of shoe. There is something for everyone. Fan studies is the study of fans and their cultures, looking at how fans interact with each other, how they express themselves and “‘secondary texts’ produced by fans, such as fan fiction, art-work inspired by a particular cultural object or performer, and other forms of cultural production” (Gasher Skinner Lorimer, 137).

392). In other words, people are acting as “prosumers,” a term coined by Alvin Toffler, by consuming and producing media texts of their own (Toffler, 1989). The Internet provides a space where this participatory culture can thrive. Discussion-based forums and boards are especially active places where fans can interact. According to Jenkins, "message boards and forums become knowledge communities that structure and organize the fans’ knowledge about a particular text” (Booth, 2010, pp. 37-38). From these interactive online hubs, fans can work together to create distinct meanings unique to their fan culture and themselves, according to media scholar Paul Booth: “Dialogue through forums and listservs create meaning for the members of the community separated from the meaning contained (or read) within the extant media object” (Booth, 2010, pp. 37-38). Discussion boards and forums aren’t the only places where this type of interaction occurs; blogs are another place where fans can engage in this participatory culture. Blogs, and more importantly, their ability to comment and provide feedback are integral to the interactivity and productivity of online fandom. According to Booth, "Comments become a way for the blog to elicit feedback and participation by members of a community.” This ability to provide instantaneous feedback fulfills the desire of instant gratification and fosters the ability to communicate more effectively as a collective

To highlight the ideas Nancy K. Baym addressed in her chapter, Communities and Networks, I found a TEDx Talk by Rosianna Halse Rojas (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JmFXtbsL2g), an online content producer who looks at online communities as having a positive impact. Rosianna Halse Rojas is a YouTuber with 42,000 subscribers who, in the TEDx Talk describes herself as an active member of an online community (YouTube). In her TEDx Talk, she describes how her love for Harry Potter fueled her interest in online content and online communities.

People often use a word ‘fan’ to express and to define their enthusiasm for certain target, such as music stars, sports teams, and celebrities. I myself often use the word ‘fan’ to describe my passion toward baseball, as well as my friends use to describe me. The word ‘fan’ derived from a word ‘fanatic’. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word ‘fanatic’ defines as follows: “connotated religious zealotry and was widely used at the time to refer to those who were mad, frenzied, or possessed (Oxford English Dictionary 1989, pp.711, 712-713)”(Cavicchi, p.38). However, I thought the basic concept of the word ‘fan’ is similar to the definition of the Oxford English Dictionary, but the word ‘fan’ that has been used is slightly different. Since there are various the definition and

FANS ARE MORE LIKELY TO SPEND THEIR TIME WITH TRAVEL, COOKING, EATING OUT, FILMS/CINEMA, & SHOPPING

Towards the end of sixth grade (I think), I found out about fandoms. A fandom is a community of fans, participating in fanac and interacting in some way, whether through discussions or creative works. Some people feel that those in the same fandom as them are like family. We talk to each other, try to make each other happy, support one another, and give advice and suggestions. Before you continue, I highly suggest not looking up any animes, shows, or web-comics that I may mention, no matter how awesome I say they are, unless you are okay with staying up until one in the morning because you wanted to know what happens next. Also, you might end up spending a lot of money if you want to cosplay as a character. The Warrior cat books by Erin Hunter are great, and you probably won't lose sleep of friends because of them, so go ahead and check them out!

In 2009 I finally came to a conclusion, I couldn’t continue playing this game despite the various expansions that were created after the original in 2004. As I decided to stop, I witnessed my brothers continuing on without me. Along with this I started to build up the curiosity of how much popularity this game has brought about, in order to build a demand for these expansions. It then occurred to me that the fans of the game built the continuation of playing. Most commonly we assume that we need to associate the concept of being a fan to a celebrity. After reading through chapter 8: Media fandom and audiences subcultures I was able to come to a new redefining aspect of looking at fans with the help of Jenkins and later scholars when indicating that “… fan audiences are deeply engaged in their favorite media texts. Fans often reinterpret media content and create their own cultural productions in response.” (Sullivan, p. 193). This constantly made me think back to why was I the second

Live action film was able to develop at a much rapid pace due to the realism of what was seen on camera. Live action film allowed the viewers the ability to see human beings doing things that they could do. Where as in animation such as in the Émile Cohl’s Fantasmagorie it was more imaginative. In real life scenes and things of don’t just transform from one shape or thing to another. The live action films are more relatable and natural for the human eye and mind to adapt and accept.