Entry tags:
2008-12-18
Entry tags:
Fandignation
Do you remember the extract from Don Watson's little book, On Indignation, which I linked to back in October? I got hold of the book, and not only is it terribly funny (generally when you least expect it) it also taught me a few things about myself, as well as more about fandom than most of the academic books on the subject have or will.
Indignation is distinct from anger; is exaggerated; is about a bruise on the ego. It results from a perceived slight, such as impertinence from a lower status person, an insult to an extension of one's self ("our children or our dog, our car or refrigerator, our God, our horse"... our favourite story or ship, our fanfic, our opinions). An indignant person's "real or presumed self has been threatened, [causing] an all but irresistable need to get on one's high horse and brain the offender at once." It's possible to give unintentional offence by blundering into someone else's sense of self-worth, causing them to explode into inexplicable rage, "outbursts out of all proportion to the offence, capable of causing lethal strokes or heart attacks in the offended and painful if not actually dangerous to bystanders."
"Anger obliterates personality," remarks Watson, but "Indignation expresses it" - a rich source of drama and comedy. There's righteous indignation, and there's unrighteous indignation, the refusal to conform and obey: "Among people who fear God and value peace and harmony, the chronically wilful represent the greatest threat." Shock jocks whip up righteous indignation, and feed on it. Politicians use it to "bolster [themselves], reduce others and manipulate as many as possible". Or it may gag us: how many times have you seen someone post "There are no words" instead of actually saying something?
Watson's insights helped me see my own indignation in online debates: "How can you say something so stupid! I'm speechless! No, wait, let me write several thousand words about it." :)
Indignation is distinct from anger; is exaggerated; is about a bruise on the ego. It results from a perceived slight, such as impertinence from a lower status person, an insult to an extension of one's self ("our children or our dog, our car or refrigerator, our God, our horse"... our favourite story or ship, our fanfic, our opinions). An indignant person's "real or presumed self has been threatened, [causing] an all but irresistable need to get on one's high horse and brain the offender at once." It's possible to give unintentional offence by blundering into someone else's sense of self-worth, causing them to explode into inexplicable rage, "outbursts out of all proportion to the offence, capable of causing lethal strokes or heart attacks in the offended and painful if not actually dangerous to bystanders."
"Anger obliterates personality," remarks Watson, but "Indignation expresses it" - a rich source of drama and comedy. There's righteous indignation, and there's unrighteous indignation, the refusal to conform and obey: "Among people who fear God and value peace and harmony, the chronically wilful represent the greatest threat." Shock jocks whip up righteous indignation, and feed on it. Politicians use it to "bolster [themselves], reduce others and manipulate as many as possible". Or it may gag us: how many times have you seen someone post "There are no words" instead of actually saying something?
Watson's insights helped me see my own indignation in online debates: "How can you say something so stupid! I'm speechless! No, wait, let me write several thousand words about it." :)
Entry tags:
Holy -!
One of my Internet essays gets a mention in a 1998 book, Domestic Violence and Social Work. (Yes, I was ego-scanning Google books. What's it to ya? :) I must extract my digit and get that back up online.