The Themed Convention : Star Trek Fandom and Mythos

Following the Gotham and Metropolis Blog, here is the blog that was listed to follow:

The Themed Convention

 

 

 

Star Trek  represents modern myth, and as such it legitimizes fan participation in numerous activities, particularly themed conventions. Myth explains the meaning which fans have assigned to both

Star Trek  and the archetype characters it has created.

Star Trek acts as a secular myth for contemporary times by providing cultural symbols and meanings that serve as a model for the formation of a distinct subculture. Themed conventions represent the way in which fans come together to more fully participate in the myth, solidifying the place

Trek  holds in their daily lives,and allowing for the continued evolution of a vibrant subculture.

1

Myth acts as a model for all aspects of human behavior, all cultural practices, and ultimatelyassigns value to life. The

Trek  myth is quite real to members of fandom, and like all myth, it issubject to continued reinterpretation on the individual level at varying points in time by the believers in the myth. Despite this, it is possible to identify core meanings in

Star Trek .

Theutopian future, concept of IDIC (infinite diversity in infinite combinations), and the humanisticstudy of the humanity are ideals shared across fandom.

Star Trek  is a futuristic portal, allowingfans to learn from the past, make changes in the present, and strive for a

Trek  future. Fans havefound compatibility between the messages of 

Trek and personal beliefs, incorporating the mythinto their daily lives with ease.

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Themed conventions provide a platform for understanding the utilization of myth. Fans gather and translate the myth into a cultural binding force, legitimizing their subculture. Fans agree that participation is required, that the myth must be experienced. Fans participate in the myth inseveral ways. They create alien personas, take on the persona of their favorite Trek  character or species group with whom they identify with ideologically, collect merchandise for the purposesof owning a piece of the myth, perform songs and plays, and seek out their favorite actors inorder to complete the meeting of the myth experience. These conventions allow fans to escapethe constraints of contemporary society and fulfill their desire to exist in and experience theutopian future of Star Trek 

.

Star Trek  Conventions offer an arena for fans to share their interpretations concerning stories and characters and to more fully participate in the myth. Convention participation strengthens the place of myth in their daily lives

. Star Trek as modern myth possesses the power to bring meaning to life and to transform life according to all patterns inherent in myth. Themed conventions are a celebration of that power and of the desire of fans to harness that power to change their world. 

 

NEXT BLOG: EARLY NOV 2014 due to speaking schedule for travel and conventions:  Bronze Age of Comics !

 

 Notes1.

 

For more on myth and the anthropological perspective, see, Claude L`evi ± Strauss,

 Myth and  Meaning: Cracking the Code of Culture

. 1979. Shocken Books. New York;

 

CamilleBacon-Smith,

 Enterprising Women: Television, Fandom, and the Creation of Popular 

 Myth. 1992. University of Pennsylvania Press;

 

Wendy Doniger, Other  People¶s Myths:The Cave of Echoes

, 1988. Macmillan.

 New York. Bronislaw Malinowski, ³Myth inPrimitive Psychology´, In

 Magic, Science, and Religion and Other Essays

.1992 [1948].Waveland Press. Illinois.2.

 

For more on Star Trek and fandom, see, Peter J. Claus, ³A Structuralist Appreciation of Star Trek´, In

The American Dimension

. Montegue and Arens, editors. 1976. AlfredPublishing.

 New York;

 

Henry Jenkins,

Textual Poachers: Television Fans and  Participatory Culture.

1992. Routledge. London and

 New York; John Tulloch and HenryJenkins,

Science Fiction Audiences: Watching Dr. Who and Star Trek 

. 1995. Routledge.London and  New York.





Comics as Teaching Tools: A brief blog

Comics as Teaching Tools



                                                  

NPR did a story back in January on Code Switch, a comic ! It focuses on themes in comics such as the concept of "race"  or ethnic identity, and culture  in comics. Extremely well done! The article as well as the comic that is.  This focuses on a new memoir from the Civil Rights Movement. It is written with Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell via US Representative John Lewis' account of his experiences as a participant in the Civil Rights Movement along with his history as a public servant.  All that in a comic book folks! Look them up on facebook for sure! This is basically a graphic novel type version of Lewis' life story, his superhero origin story so to speak.  A comic about Rosa Parks actually was the basis of inspiration for Lewis, and he decided to use comics as a vehicle to examine nonviolent movements. This exploration propelled his involvement with the Civil Rights Movement and the March on Washington.  This comic is an ideal teaching tool for those wishing to introduce and discuss the idea of non violent means to gain social justice to their students. It can be adapted to classrooms of multiple grade levels with a fair amount of ease as well. The push is also on now to get Code Switch into the hands of libraries and classrooms across the United States.

Comics in general hold a great deal of educational value and are quite well suited to teaching in the classroom since they offer an unbiased means by which numerous sociocultural themes can be discussed. They help lower the defenses and barriers inherent in opening discussions on history, politics, religion, gender, and ethical dilemmas. One is limited only by their creativity in pulling topics from comic examples for application in the classroom. 
Not only comics, but graphic novels for older students also work well as metaphorical materials are more apt to be useful at the high school or college levels.  Comics is quite the diverse genre. There are mainstream and independent works that hold many culturally themed wonders.

There is an excellent teaching resource that has been published online since 2011, The Comics Grid: Journal of Comics Scholarship.  There is a vast range of reviews and academic papers on themes in comics. They cover the full spectrum of available comics, mainstream and otherwise, that are available to the public.

The case for considering comics in the classroom has been supported by teaching about teaching via the comic To Teach: The Journey, in Comics. It is written by William Ayers and Ryan Alexander-Tanner (Teachers College Press, 2010).  Comics make for ideal alternatives to the traditional textbooks, and make for more creativity and diversity in discussion important themes in the classroom. 

Apologies for a brief blog this week.  I shall return to the more specific themes where I had left off in Gotham last blog and continue forward with topics once I am by a heavy travel schedule with convention talks through late November 2014. 

Thank you.