(Sorry for the duplicate, Neil! I always screw up with Lysator. )
I'm splitting my reply into two messages, because I think there are at least two quite separate topics under discussion.
Neil Faulkner wrote:
What about all those people who never become fans of anything? Presumably they see at least something of the shows that generate fandoms, but presumably not in any way that leads them on to become 'real' fans.
Do you remember all the interminable MB discussions? And how amazed everyone was to find the 'normal' distribution skewed wildly towards the I's?
Suppose *everyone* has an inborn drive to belong, to be a part of larger groups, to socialize with other people. (Which I'd say is really true.) Suppose *some* people are limited in their taste/capacity for that interaction; they *do* want and need it, but they need to be able to control and limit it. Have it when they have the energy to deal with it, be able to withdraw from it when they can't. Have it with people who are more like them than a random assortment of humanity. Have it with the attention not centered on them or the others, but focused on a topic of mutual interest.
Wouldn't you say fandom is an ideal source of sociability for people like that? Fans being relatively scarce on the ground, the distance is built in. You have to make the effort to go to the pub meeting or convention when you want the companionship, and there's little 'danger' of it pounding on your door and demanding you be social when you'd rather not. Most of the means of conversation have built in time lags, so there aren't hurt feelings if you don't reply to Mary at THAT INSTANT instead letting it go until after work tomorrow when you feel more chatty. And so on. Introvert heaven.
In contrast, those who are up for social interactions virtually all the time, the ones who find them energizing instead of draining, probably see those 'features' of fandoms as 'bugs.' What a hassle to have to hunt down the scarce fellow fan instead of simply chatting with your neighbors! How unbearable to have a conversation when you have to wait days for the other person to say anything so you can go on to finish your point.
And so Extroverts gravitate into different kinds of activities, specifically ones in which you interact in the flesh, where f2f meetings are the default. They join the Lions club/Veterans Club/Garden Club, they join bowling/soccer/baseball leagues, they hold regular potluck suppers with the neighbors, they are the regulars at the local watering hole.
IOW, I don't really think there's all that much difference in how fans and non-fans see the shows themselves. The difference is that some Introverts discover that fandom suits them as a way of socializing while Extroverts mainly satisfy that urge in other ways.
Susan Beth (susanbeth33@mindspring.com)