What It All Boils Down To...
Dec. 20th, 2007 07:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
moonshaydeI'm talking about ships.
I've noticed that in multiple fandoms (Smallville, Stargate, X-Files, and Harry Potter for example) there may be discussions about plot, character, themes, and story, but in the end it all seems to boil down to ship. (Defining ship here in the broad sense - het or slash.) Sure, there are people in fandom that are there just for characters and plot. But those that are mainly focused on shipping is by far the majority. Once you weed through the hearty discussion of character arcs and plot, you'll see that people are arguing for "who ends up with who." Out of everything, this becomes the main focus and the most passionate for fans.
Take a look at any forum or discussion area. Doesn't matter which fandom. Most of them mirror each other.
So, I ask why? Why do we (in general) abandon everything else about the story, making it secondary to the ship? Why is it so vital to have the end goal be "so and so ends up with Clark" or "so and so ends up with Mulder" or "so and so ends up with Jack?" Why does that becoming the most defining attribute of the story or the characters? Why are we defining them by their romantic entanglements? Why are we defining them by their prize at the end of the day?
And is it the woman who is the prize in the end? Or the man? I've seen this go back and forth and it may depend on the fandom.
It happens across fandoms. I've noticed it a lot lately. As![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
stargazercmc mentioned, is this something inate or does fandom perpetuate it? I wonder does this feed some basic human need or is something else going on here?
I've noticed that in multiple fandoms (Smallville, Stargate, X-Files, and Harry Potter for example) there may be discussions about plot, character, themes, and story, but in the end it all seems to boil down to ship. (Defining ship here in the broad sense - het or slash.) Sure, there are people in fandom that are there just for characters and plot. But those that are mainly focused on shipping is by far the majority. Once you weed through the hearty discussion of character arcs and plot, you'll see that people are arguing for "who ends up with who." Out of everything, this becomes the main focus and the most passionate for fans.
Take a look at any forum or discussion area. Doesn't matter which fandom. Most of them mirror each other.
So, I ask why? Why do we (in general) abandon everything else about the story, making it secondary to the ship? Why is it so vital to have the end goal be "so and so ends up with Clark" or "so and so ends up with Mulder" or "so and so ends up with Jack?" Why does that becoming the most defining attribute of the story or the characters? Why are we defining them by their romantic entanglements? Why are we defining them by their prize at the end of the day?
And is it the woman who is the prize in the end? Or the man? I've seen this go back and forth and it may depend on the fandom.
It happens across fandoms. I've noticed it a lot lately. As
stargazercmc mentioned, is this something inate or does fandom perpetuate it? I wonder does this feed some basic human need or is something else going on here?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-12-22 01:35 am (UTC)I'm talking about when fans (in general which could include me or you or anyone) take a pairing, imgained or subplot and elevate it to the main plot of the story. I'm not talking fanfic. I am talking about watching a TV show, for example, and coming away with that inverse.
I wonder why. I wonder what psychologically makes some fans do this. I've done it before. Other people have done it. What drives fans to sometimes make ship THE absolute end result?
This has nothing to do with ship vs slash or that romance is bad. I love romance. I'm just curious.
no subject
Date: 2007-12-22 04:08 am (UTC)No, and I know that say, Jack/Daniel is not THE end result for you. I would argue the majority of my flist has a great appreciation for story and romance within story, which is why I brought up the topic. I just wasn't very clear in my initial post, I guess. I know we're all adults here :)