"The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction
This article examines incestuous slash fan fiction produced for the CW television series Supernatural. I argue that "Wincest" fan fiction is best understood not as perverse, oppositional resistance to a heterosexual, nonincestuous show, but an expression of readings that are suggested and...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Organization for Transformative Works
2008-09-01
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| Series: | Transformative Works and Cultures |
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| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.3983/twc.2008.0030 |
| _version_ | 1818575746407333888 |
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| author | Catherine Tosenberger |
| author_facet | Catherine Tosenberger |
| author_sort | Catherine Tosenberger |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article examines incestuous slash fan fiction produced for the CW television series Supernatural. I argue that "Wincest" fan fiction is best understood not as perverse, oppositional resistance to a heterosexual, nonincestuous show, but an expression of readings that are suggested and supported by the text itself. I examine the literary, cultural, and folkloric discourses of incest and queerness invoked by the series, paying special attention to Romanticism, the Gothic, and horror as underliers to those discourses, and how those genres inform both the series and the fan fiction. I discuss a number of Wincest stories in detail, focusing upon how these stories build upon thematic elements within the series. In conclusion, I argue that the most resistive aspect of Wincest fan fiction is that it gives the main characters a lasting happiness that the series eternally defers. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-15T00:45:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c44bf7874e9546c3ac1e3c75b9ff1103 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1941-2258 1941-2258 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-15T00:45:11Z |
| publishDate | 2008-09-01 |
| publisher | Organization for Transformative Works |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Transformative Works and Cultures |
| spelling | doaj.art-c44bf7874e9546c3ac1e3c75b9ff11032022-12-21T22:41:34ZengOrganization for Transformative WorksTransformative Works and Cultures1941-22581941-22582008-09-01110.3983/twc.2008.0030"The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fictionCatherine Tosenberger0University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, CanadaThis article examines incestuous slash fan fiction produced for the CW television series Supernatural. I argue that "Wincest" fan fiction is best understood not as perverse, oppositional resistance to a heterosexual, nonincestuous show, but an expression of readings that are suggested and supported by the text itself. I examine the literary, cultural, and folkloric discourses of incest and queerness invoked by the series, paying special attention to Romanticism, the Gothic, and horror as underliers to those discourses, and how those genres inform both the series and the fan fiction. I discuss a number of Wincest stories in detail, focusing upon how these stories build upon thematic elements within the series. In conclusion, I argue that the most resistive aspect of Wincest fan fiction is that it gives the main characters a lasting happiness that the series eternally defers.http://dx.doi.org/10.3983/twc.2008.0030Fan fictionGenderSupernaturalTV |
| spellingShingle | Catherine Tosenberger "The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction Transformative Works and Cultures Fan fiction Gender Supernatural TV |
| title | "The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction |
| title_full | "The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction |
| title_fullStr | "The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction |
| title_full_unstemmed | "The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction |
| title_short | "The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction |
| title_sort | the epic love story of sam and dean supernatural queer readings and the romance of incestuous fan fiction |
| topic | Fan fiction Gender Supernatural TV |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.3983/twc.2008.0030 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT catherinetosenberger theepiclovestoryofsamanddeansupernaturalqueerreadingsandtheromanceofincestuousfanfiction |