<論文>二次創作文化の集団論的検討

Abstract

In contemporary society, social groups are not necessarily regional and often show fluidity. The social group associated with fan-fiction is one example of such a borderless group which has grown with the proliferation of the Internet. Fan-fiction (nijisōsaku, derivative works) refers to creations, such as comics or novels, made by fans using characters or worlds of already-existing fictions. In this group, members display a remarkably high level of mobility and there are no official organizations, official leaders or written rules. Nevertheless, their activities converge in certain patterns, both online and offline, for maximizing efficiency in communication with other fans. They have a specific economy like organizations, trade their own fan works at events such as “Comic Market” and make use of outside companies. However, members of the group also share common ideals of equality and a non-profit motive resulting from their consciousness of the relationship with the original fictions and the infringement on intellectual property rights though the group has an informal hierarchy based upon the popularity or roles of its members. Based on long-term participant observation and in-depth interviews within the fan-fiction group, the purpose of this paper is to elucidate the structural order from the perspective of the social group elaborating the aforementioned features, analyzing interactions, and examining the roles of members, inside norms and outside rules. This paper also highlights a latent function that works to maintain the huge and amorphous group referring to Simmel’s discussion of “sociability (Geselligkeit)”.