Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Understanding the Contemporary Theme Park : Theming, Immersion and Fandom
- 3 Fandom, Brandom and Plandom : Haptic Fandom, Anticipatory Labour and Digital Knowledge
- 4 Extending the Haunted Mansion : Spatial Poaching, Participatory Narratives and Retrospective Transmedia
- 5 Of Mice and Minions : ‘Ani-embodiment’ and ‘Metonymic Celebrity’ in the Theme Park Character Encounter
- 6 Turkey Legs, Dole Whip and Duff : Consumables, Diegetic Paratexts and ‘Cult-Culinary’ Objects
- 7 Embodied Transmedia and Paratextual-Spatio Play : Consuming, Collecting and Costuming Theme Park Merchandise
- 8 Replacing and Remembering Rides : Ontological Security, Authenticity and Online Memorialization
- 9 Conclusion: Ways Forward for Theme Park and Fan Studies
- Index
7 - Embodied Transmedia and Paratextual-Spatio Play : Consuming, Collecting and Costuming Theme Park Merchandise
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2020
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Understanding the Contemporary Theme Park : Theming, Immersion and Fandom
- 3 Fandom, Brandom and Plandom : Haptic Fandom, Anticipatory Labour and Digital Knowledge
- 4 Extending the Haunted Mansion : Spatial Poaching, Participatory Narratives and Retrospective Transmedia
- 5 Of Mice and Minions : ‘Ani-embodiment’ and ‘Metonymic Celebrity’ in the Theme Park Character Encounter
- 6 Turkey Legs, Dole Whip and Duff : Consumables, Diegetic Paratexts and ‘Cult-Culinary’ Objects
- 7 Embodied Transmedia and Paratextual-Spatio Play : Consuming, Collecting and Costuming Theme Park Merchandise
- 8 Replacing and Remembering Rides : Ontological Security, Authenticity and Online Memorialization
- 9 Conclusion: Ways Forward for Theme Park and Fan Studies
- Index
Summary
Abstract
This chapter explores how hierarchies of cultural value operate in relation to theme park merchandise through the example of Disney pin-trading which allows fans to display their fan identities (e.g. preference for certain characters, attractions, or hotels) or presence at particular events (via the acquisition of limited edition event pins). It also explores how theme park fans display their fandom on their bodies via clothing and subversive forms of costuming known as DisneyBounding. The link between clothing and specific sites within the park allows fans to engage in forms of ‘embodied transmedia extension’ since fans can engage in ludic imaginative spaces. The chapter acknowledges how theme park fans enter into acts of commercial exchange whilst also operating their own hierarchies regarding acts of consumption.
Key words: paratextual-spatio play, cosplay, DisneyBounding, embodied transmedia, fan fashion, material culture
Introduction
One of the key activities undertaken by theme park fans is the purchase and collection of merchandise. As a brand Disney has long been seen to demonstrate ‘a careful integration of entertainment and fun with commodification and consumption’ (Wasko 2001, p. 158) and Universal Studios has certainly followed this pattern with huge profits made from its in-park merchandising of key properties such as Shrek, Despicable Me, SpongeBob SquarePants, Jurassic Park and, via the opening of The Wizarding World
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Theme Park FandomSpatial Transmedia, Materiality and Participatory Cultures, pp. 181 - 210Publisher: Amsterdam University PressPrint publication year: 2020