I might just be too optimistic, though, in that I do see most fannish - or writerly - behaviour as cheerfully attempting as much empathy as it does identification.
Oh, I do think a lot of people write in the empathic-mode rather than the identified-mode, or write in both modes at different times -- maybe a minority of fanwriters (maybe? it seems like?), but it's definitely going on. Which was exactly why I thought it was important to post something like this -- Ces has a HUGE, GIANT audience and her words carry a lot of weight, so when she says "this is what fandom is all about!" I think people are inclined to believe her. So I wanted to amend that to, "This is a big part of fannish experience, but don't forget this other stuff that's a big part for a lot of other fans."
And I agree with Cesperanza's point about how identification - provided it doesn't swallow the whole field - can be and is a useful and pleasurable form of storytelling in itself.
I actually do, too. I just think it's not the only way to tell stories or to read stories, and I think that setting it up as the unqualified central and very best way all the time where there's no such thing as too much, ever, is problematic for me.
Re: Correction to deleted post above
Oh, I do think a lot of people write in the empathic-mode rather than the identified-mode, or write in both modes at different times -- maybe a minority of fanwriters (maybe? it seems like?), but it's definitely going on. Which was exactly why I thought it was important to post something like this -- Ces has a HUGE, GIANT audience and her words carry a lot of weight, so when she says "this is what fandom is all about!" I think people are inclined to believe her. So I wanted to amend that to, "This is a big part of fannish experience, but don't forget this other stuff that's a big part for a lot of other fans."
And I agree with Cesperanza's point about how identification - provided it doesn't swallow the whole field - can be and is a useful and pleasurable form of storytelling in itself.
I actually do, too. I just think it's not the only way to tell stories or to read stories, and I think that setting it up as the unqualified central and very best way all the time where there's no such thing as too much, ever, is problematic for me.