Table Of Content

ANASTASIA SALTER & BRIDGET BLODGETT SEXISM, TROLLING, AND IDENTITY POLICING Toxic Geek Masculinity in Media Anastasia Salter · Bridget Blodgett Toxic Geek Masculinity in Media Sexism, Trolling, and Identity Policing Anastasia Salter Bridget Blodgett School of Visual Arts and Design Division of Science, Information Arts and University of Central Florida Technologies Orlando, FL, USA University of Baltimore Baltimore, MD, USA ISBN 978-3-319-66076-9 ISBN 978-3-319-66077-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-66077-6 Library of Congress Control Number: 2017950719 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Cover credit: Cover design by Sam Johnson Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Preface Geek-centered and inspired productions have accelerated their march into the mainstream with many recent events—including the success of Marvel’s cinematic universe, the rising popularity of video games, and even theatri- cal screenings of episodes of Doctor Who—all bringing geek culture into the spotlight. This rising power and visibility has brought renewed attention to the geek identity’s hostility to marginalized groups, including, but certainly not limited to, women. The marginalization of women in geek culture can seem odd when viewed numerically: women compose a large part of the audience of these media. However, they are underrepresented among crea- tors, and mostly invisible or secondary in the works themselves. We examine the state of geek cultural identity and the self-fulfilling prophecy of “geekdom” as a space where women are continually marginalized and instrumen- talized instead of given voice. Our focus is on reading digital popular culture as a testimonial and manifesto of geek identity. Examining the identity politics and construction of the geek “hero” can reveal the ways in which these texts across media are encoded with a defensiveness of geek as other that is out of touch with the reality of culture. In turn, this disconnect has grave consequences for the space of women and men both in these texts and communities, as has recently been demonstrated through movements such as Gamergate. These expressions of toxic masculinity and identity policing have given rise to a question from both the media and the community: what aspects of geek culture provide rich fuel for these surges of hostility? The authors of this work both identify as American geeks and fans as well as scholars dedicated to media studies through different disciplinary lenses. v vi Preface The franchises, stories, and heroes under discussion here are the same characters that we have grown up with, plastered on office walls, and followed through adaptations and remakes. We have stood in line for the Star Wars prequels, attended midnight launch parties for Harry Potter novels, and even sat in a theater for a special showing of the extended editions of the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. And yes, we’ve written fanfiction, obsessively followed shipper tags and fan artists on Tumblr, and engaged in many heated late-night debates over the adaptation choices of Game of Thrones. The heroes under examination here are our heroes: the characters we grew up with, and are still growing up with, should not be immune from analy- sis and critique. While we acknowledge that some critics might be concerned with the positioning of two women-assigned authors of a study on geek masculinity, we believe that this study is not merely concerned with toxic geek masculinity but with the continual rejection and negative fram- ing of femininity within geek spaces: it is impossible to discuss one without addressing both. Throughout, we engage and reject the false binary of mas- culine/feminine as well as the identities of man and woman: we understand “man” and “woman” to be identity categories including both cis and trans men and women. However, representations of cis men and women domi- nate geek media, and representation of trans men and women as well as nonbinary, genderqueer, and other gender-nonconforming people remains a distant goal that this discourse of toxic masculinity plays a role in restricting. As we’ve navigated our own identities as fans, academics, and geeks, we have been continually aware of the challenges of the outsider, and it has informed much of our previous collaborative research on the positioning of non-cis man as other in STEM and the games community. Our intention is to explore how geek identity has taken assumptions of marginalization as foundational. The perceived status of geek identity as marginalized and threatened even as geek culture has become mainstreamed are contradictory forces at play in the current battle over the renegotiation of the geek identity. To understand this construction, we will look at the very nature of the hero in geek-marketed media, both in spaces marked for science fiction and fantasy and in narratives that seek to reflect geek culture back at itself. These dueling visions of geek-as-victim and geek-as- hero give rise to the hypermasculine geek, an identity forged by rejecting both feminine-marked culture and constructions as well as the traditional athletic male aesthetic. We explore how this identity’s relationship to estab- lished cultural hierarchies makes it difficult for geekdom to reconcile itself with its new dominant position in pop culture even as it remains dedicated to an identity as the outsider hero: an archetype seen everywhere from Preface vii Supernatural to Firefly to Doctor Who. The challenge to this archetype by those the geek community views as outsiders results in tensions and strug- gles sending ripples throughout both popular culture and the larger STEM community. These have become more and more pronounced with geek culture’s apparent increasing significance and visibility. Over the past few years, we have witnessed the rise of gamer collectives dedicated to exclud- ing women and feminists through movements such as Gamergate, increased attention to hostilities towards women at comic and film conventions, and the continual harassment and threats towards women across geek media who become visible as producers or fans. Orlando, USA Anastasia Salter Baltimore, USA Bridget Blodgett Acknowledgements We are collectively involved in several research communities where we have received feedback on different stages of this project, including the Popular Culture Association, the Society for Cinema and Media Studies, the Modern Language Association, the Foundations of Digital Games Conference, the Association of Internet Research Association, and the Electronic Literature Organization. To name only a few of the colleagues, collabora- tors, mentors, students, and friends who have offered advice, insight, and inspiration (in alphabetical order): Kathi Inman Berens, David Blodgett, Stephanie Boluk, Julia Bullard, Edmond Chang, Shira Chess, Amanda Cockrell, Joseph Fanfarelli, Jacob Garbe, Todd Harper, Emily Johnson, Matthew Kirschenbaum, Flourish Klink, Carly Kocurek, Adeline Koh, Deb Kohl, Deena Larsen, Liz Losh, Marjorie Luesebrink, Wayne Lutters, Rudy McDaniel, Mark Marino, Nick Montfort, Stuart Moulthrop, Eric Murnane, John Murray, Bonnie Nardi, J.J. Pionke, Aaron Reed, Mark Sample, Adrienne Shaw, Peter Smith, Nick Sousanis, Mel Stanfill, Anne Sullivan, Kathryn Summers, Patricia Thomas, Piper Thunstrom, and Eileen Young. We feel very fortunate that the world of print still exists and that pub- lishers such as Palgrave Macmillan are keeping academic publishing alive. Thanks to our editor, Shaun Vigil, for his support of the project, and special thanks to Angelia Giannone for her invaluable assistance with preparing the manuscript. Thanks to our colleagues at the University of Baltimore and the University of Central Florida who were understanding of our woes and pen- chant for yelling research ideas at each other through the wall. Your words of ix x Acknowledgements encouragement and belief that this was a topic worth examination helped us keep pushing through the hard parts. Deepest love and thanks to our families who have offered both emotional and intellectual support during the writing of this book and our careers. We don’t know why we decided looking into divisive, stressful pop culture was a good idea, but we couldn’t do it so well without you. Contents 1 Introduction: Actually, It’s about Toxic Geek Masculinity… 1 2 “Dick in a Box”: Hypermasculine Heroism in Geek TV and Film 17 3 Beauty and the Geek: On-Screen Representations of Geeks 45 4 Come Get Some: Damsels in Distress and the Male Default Avatar in Video Games 73 5 Through the Boob Window: Examining Sexualized Portrayals in Transmedia Comic Franchises 101 6 Bronies on the Iron Throne: Perceptions of Prosocial Behaviors and Success 131 7 One of Us, One of Us!: Representations and Dialogues with “Fanboys” and “Fangirls” 157 8 Conclusion: That’s Not How Geek Masculinity Works! 189 Index 209 xi

Description:

This book examines changing representations of masculinity in geek media, during a time of transition in which “geek” has not only gone mainstream but also become a more contested space than ever, with continual clashes such as Gamergate, the Rabid and Sad Puppies’ attacks on the Hugo Awards,