Nerds! Cultural Practices and Community-Making in a Subcultural

Nerds!: Cultural Practices and Community-Making in a Subcultural Scene by Benjamin Michael WOO Chun How M.A. (Communication), Simon Fraser University, 2006 B.A. (Hons.), Queen’s University, 2004 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Communication Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology © Benjamin Woo 2012 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Summer 2012 All rights reserved. However, in accordance with the Copyright Act of Canada, this work may be reproduced, without authorization, under the conditions for “Fair Dealing.” Therefore, limited reproduction of this work for the purposes of private study, research, criticism, review and news reporting is likely to be in accordance with the law, particularly if cited appropriately. Approval Name: Benjamin Woo Degree: Doctor of Philosophy (Communication) Title of Thesis: Nerds!: Cultural Practices and Community-Making in a Subcultural Scene Examining Committee: Chair: Richard Smith, Professor Gary McCarron Senior Supervisor Associate Professor Shane Gunster Supervisor Associate Professor Stuart Poyntz Supervisor Assistant Professor Cindy Patton Internal/External Examiner Canada Research Chair in Community, Culture & Health Department of Sociology and Anthropology Bart Beaty External Examiner Professor Department of English University of Calgary Date Defended/Approved: August 13, 2012 ii Partial Copyright Licence iii Ethics Statement The author, whose name appears on the title page of this work, has obtained, for the research described in this work, either: a. human research ethics approval from the Simon Fraser University Office of Research Ethics, or b. advance approval of the animal care protocol from the University Animal Care Committee of Simon Fraser University; or has conducted the research c. as a co-investigator, collaborator or research assistant in a research project approved in advance, or d. as a member of a course approved in advance for minimal risk human research, by the Office of Research Ethics. A copy of the approval letter has been filed at the Theses Office of the University Library at the time of submission of this thesis or project. The original application for approval and letter of approval are filed with the relevant offices. Inquiries may be directed to those authorities. Simon Fraser University Library Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada update Spring 2010 Abstract For thirty-five years or so, the press has periodically announced the “revenge of the nerds.” But categories like nerd and geek have no essential definitions; rather, they index social relationships. I define “nerd culture” as a field generated by practices of connoisseurship and criticism oriented towards cultural forms like comic books, games, and certain literary and media genres. Existing studies typically focus on representations of nerds or on individual communities of practice, ignoring either real people or the field’s full scope. This dissertation, by contrast, analyzes one Canadian city’s “nerd-culture scene.” First, I examine institutions sustaining the scene. Community organizations and specialty retailers circulate valued subcultural capital, such as knowledge and collectibles, and act as infrastructures for the scene’s reproduction. Individuals working in these spaces mediate between producers and consumers, configuring the scene through their gatekeeping labour. But they operate under constraints, as well—not least that their dispositions are shaped by their own experiences of nerd culture. Second, I interviewed individuals involved with one or more nerd-culture practices. All interviewees evidenced a “scholastic disposition” informed by their experiences of schooling. This lay theory of education also influenced how they interpreted their participation in nerd culture. Accounts of their “careers” in the subculture, from initial recruitment and deepening engagements to eventual durability or decline, are also examined. Finally, I analyze their experiences of community among nerds. Community- making is a routine feature of their participation but is also subject to external limitations such as time, money, and adult responsibilities. Practitioners’ shared orientations enable them to produce relatively communalized social relationships, even in an individualizing consumer society. The so-called mainstreaming of nerd culture offers opportunities to extend the scope of these relationships but also threatens these communities’ autonomy. This dissertation makes explicit the practical—and therefore morally significant—character of nerd culture, providing a basis for policy- makers, community leaders and ordinary participants to defend these media-oriented practices and their related goods. Keywords: nerds; geeks; mass media audiences; practice theory; qualitative methods iv Acknowledgements My greatest debt is to everyone who participated in the study that follows. Due to ethical considerations, I cannot thank them by name, but this would not have been possible if they hadn’t been so generous with their time. I’ve done my best to report and interpret what they told me faithfully and generously; I can only hope I have done them justice. I acknowledge the financial support of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. The School of Communication, Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology, and the Graduate Student Society also provided support for research, writing, or dissemination during my studies. Thanks to Richard Smith and Adam Holbrook of the Centre for Policy Research on Science and Technology for letting me colonize a desk for a couple years. I’d also like to express my appreciation to the staff at SFU’s Belzberg Library, who handled an awful lot of hold requests for me. I want to thank my supervisors, Gary McCarron, Shane Gunster and Stuart Poyntz, and my examiners, Cindy Patton and Bart Beaty. I received encouragement and guidance at various key points in my studies from Alison Beale, Zoë Druick, Rick Gruneau, Steve Kline, and Jan Marontate. I’d also like to thank our graduate program co-ordinator Jason Congdon for his help in keeping all the administrative details straight. My dissertation argues that community is a collective accomplishment, and eight years in grad school has only reinforced that conclusion. I should especially like to thank Sara Grimes, Leslie Meier, Neil Narine, and Jamie Rennie; Danielle Deveau, Dylan Mulvin, Siobhán Quinn, and Becky Scott (to evil!); the members of my Dissertation Support Group; and Catherine Hart, Masa Iwase, Chris Jeschelnik, Maggie Macaulay, Jay McKinnon, Marcos Moldes, Rob Prey, Milan Singh, Scott Timcke, Graeme Webb, Jeff Whyte, and Ayaka Yoshimizu—thanks for the lulz, guys. Outside the School of Communication’s tight embrace, I want to thank Lydia Cruttwell, Tracy Russell and Dave Wager, the gang at the Vancouver Comic Jam, and my extended circle of internet pals. Finally, I offer thanks to my partner in all things, Laurena Nash. She supported me, got outraged on my behalf and talked me back from the brink of nervous breakdowns more times than I care to recall while I wrote this thing, and so it’s dedicated to her with love. v Table of Contents Approval ................................................................................................................................................................................ ii Partial Copyright Licence ............................................................................................................................................ iii Abstract ................................................................................................................................................................................ iv Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................................................. vi List of Tables ...................................................................................................................................................................... ix List of Figures .................................................................................................................................................................... ix Transcription Notation ................................................................................................................................................. ix Glossary and List of Acronyms ................................................................................................................................... x Introduction: The NES Buckle ........................................................................................................ 1 Research Problem: Re-communalizing the Society of Consumers ......................................................... 3 Overview of Methodology ............................................................................................................................................ 8 Phronetic Inquiry and Qualitative Research ......................................................................................... 8 Research Design .................................................................................................................................................10 Outline

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