The gender politics of supernatural : slash fan fictions and the power dynamic in fan/producers relationship

Abstract

This dissertation examines the power relationship between the TV series Supernatural and the practice of slash fanfictions in the Supernatural fandom. Despite the masculine narrative of the show, the influx of slash fanfics that are mostly written by women indicates an interesting power dynamic between the series and its fans. To further complicated this power relation, Supernatural has responded to the rise of fandom and slash fanfics in several episodes, in which offers more rooms to explore the power dynamic between the mainstream media and the fans. Through the narrative analysis of the Kripke Era, the dissertation first argues that the main protagonists of Supernatural, Sam and Dean Winchester, embody an ambivalent kind of masculinity which attracts a broad base of female fans. Then, through the scrutiny of the narrative structure of slash fanfics, the dissertation moves on to argue that the females fans assert their power over the characters of Sam and Dean by the melodramatic and homoerotic transformation of the brotherhood. Lastly, it is examined how the sudden increase of slash fanfics in the Supernatural fandom becomes a potential threat to the series, and the way that the series attempts to control and acknowledge the fans and their fannish works through the canonical representation of fangirls from the meta-episodes of Supernatural. This dissertation concludes by stating the power dynamic between the Supernatural TV series and its fans are always fluid, and has revolutionised the way that people understand the interaction between the mainstream media and its audience.