Abstract
With the publication of Textual Poachers in 1992, Henry Jenkins put fandom on the academic radar. He vigorously challenged prevailing notions of media fans, held by an assortment of academics, high-culture aficionados, critics, and William Shatner, as passive dupes of mass culture sorely in need of lives.1 Jenkins provided an empowering accounting of fan practices under the rubric of textual poaching, borrowed from the Marxist theorist Michel de Certeau. According to de Certeau, “poaching … on the property of others” (xii) is what characterizes the multiple practices of everyday life. These “tactics of consumption” are “ingenious ways in which the weak make use of the strong” (xiv). Jenkins makes a similar point about fans being in a position of “cultural marginality and social weakness. Fans must beg with the networks to keep their favorite shows on the air, must lobby producers to provide desired plot developments or to protect the integrity of favorite characters” (26-27).
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | New Directions in American Reception Study |
Pages | 289-305 |
Number of pages | 17 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9780197725467 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Jan. 2023 |
Keywords
- assortment
- media
- notions
- prevailing
- publication