Slash Survey Results, the finale
Besides just looking at reasons for interest in slash as being focused on the text and the characters, the survey also looked at other reasons for interest, like being a part of a social community, it being a part of one's identity, that kind of thing.
Well, we've already seen that it doesn't appear to be too important to one's sense of self, unless it is indirectly through one's interest in the related fandom.
It also appears that slash is important because we can interact with others who share the interest. People said slash is more important in finding a place where they feel they belong and being a part of a slash community, but not so important as a place for posting work online for others to see. This last thing, about posting for others to see, could be interpretted that people don't need the direct affirmation of self that would come from having others see our work. But we still like the idea of being part of a group to reaffirm that others share our ideas and thus we as an individual are not, like, weird.
Well, not weird so much as oh I need others to agree with me lest I be a freak. Because apparently people who view/create slash aren't too concerned about how their interest makes them weird or how slash makes them feel uncomfortable. And people do agree that slash is an important part of who they are - it just does not appear to be as strong a response as to how people view the social interaction.
This sounds kinda contradictory, I know. So I wonder, when you first found yourself interested in slash, were you concerned about this unconventional interest, and did seeing others online with your same interest help you overcome this?
Putting on scientist spectacles, ahem {o'o} -- because it seems to me that when a person first finds him or herself as having an interest that society may deem "odd", unless that person is really self-confident, he or she may look around and wonder well, does that mean I am odd? Then if this person is lucky enough to come across a group of people who shares this interest, he or she may start to feel better because this odditiy, what society may describe as ab-normal, can be reaffirmed as not being so bizarre, out there, or abnormal. In this way, being a part of a virtual community can bolster self-confidence and help make that interest become a part of how he or she defines their sense of self.
But this might be just one way an interest in slash helps a person. According to this survey, there are numerous other ways. How has slash helped you in your lives?
Well, we've already seen that it doesn't appear to be too important to one's sense of self, unless it is indirectly through one's interest in the related fandom.
It also appears that slash is important because we can interact with others who share the interest. People said slash is more important in finding a place where they feel they belong and being a part of a slash community, but not so important as a place for posting work online for others to see. This last thing, about posting for others to see, could be interpretted that people don't need the direct affirmation of self that would come from having others see our work. But we still like the idea of being part of a group to reaffirm that others share our ideas and thus we as an individual are not, like, weird.
Well, not weird so much as oh I need others to agree with me lest I be a freak. Because apparently people who view/create slash aren't too concerned about how their interest makes them weird or how slash makes them feel uncomfortable. And people do agree that slash is an important part of who they are - it just does not appear to be as strong a response as to how people view the social interaction.
This sounds kinda contradictory, I know. So I wonder, when you first found yourself interested in slash, were you concerned about this unconventional interest, and did seeing others online with your same interest help you overcome this?
Putting on scientist spectacles, ahem {o'o} -- because it seems to me that when a person first finds him or herself as having an interest that society may deem "odd", unless that person is really self-confident, he or she may look around and wonder well, does that mean I am odd? Then if this person is lucky enough to come across a group of people who shares this interest, he or she may start to feel better because this odditiy, what society may describe as ab-normal, can be reaffirmed as not being so bizarre, out there, or abnormal. In this way, being a part of a virtual community can bolster self-confidence and help make that interest become a part of how he or she defines their sense of self.
But this might be just one way an interest in slash helps a person. According to this survey, there are numerous other ways. How has slash helped you in your lives?